Impotence Linked to Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
Middle-aged men with erectile dysfunction may be at even greater risk, study suggests
Dr. Joel Zonszein, director of the Clinical Diabetes Center at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City, said, "Usually, erectile dysfunction is not an early complication of diabetes -- it's a late complication caused by changes in nerve function."
These findings indicate that men with erectile dysfunction may have had undiagnosed diabetes for an extended time, he added.
However, men with impotence who are at an early stage of diabetes may have another medical problem having nothing to do with their diabetes that led to the erectile dysfunction, Zonszein said.
Zonszein said doctors are often lax in asking their patients about their sexual health. "In clinical practice we don't get a good history of erectile dysfunction," he said.
Doctors should get a history of sexual function, because erectile dysfunction can be a sign of undiagnosed diabetes, Zonszein explained.
"Diabetes is not a benign disease," he said. "We have to make the diagnosis early and we have to treat diabetes early and aggressively."
Impotence Linked to Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
Middle-aged men with erectile dysfunction may be at even greater risk, study suggests
Dr. Joel Zonszein, director of the Clinical Diabetes Center at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City, said, "Usually, erectile dysfunction is not an early complication of diabetes -- it's a late complication caused by changes in nerve function."
These findings indicate that men with erectile dysfunction may have had undiagnosed diabetes for an extended time, he added.
However, men with impotence who are at an early stage of diabetes may have another medical problem having nothing to do with their diabetes that led to the erectile dysfunction, Zonszein said.
Zonszein said doctors are often lax in asking their patients about their sexual health. "In clinical practice we don't get a good history of erectile dysfunction," he said.
Doctors should get a history of sexual function, because erectile dysfunction can be a sign of undiagnosed diabetes, Zonszein explained.
"Diabetes is not a benign disease," he said. "We have to make the diagnosis early and we have to treat diabetes early and aggressively."