World Sexual Health Day will be celebrated in Rome on 10 September. In view of this important event, some data from a survey promoted by the Institute of Clinical Sexology have been made public.
By Miriam Giangiacomo
We commented on them together with Professor Ermanno Greco, andrologist and Director of the Center for Reproductive Medicine and Biology at the European Hospital in Rome, former professor of “Reproductive Physiopathology” and “Andrological Technique and Diagnostics” at the school of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Tor Vergata University of Rome and currently responsible for the Embryonic Preimplantation Diagnosis Program at the European Hospital in Rome.
Professor, recent surveys have shown that four million Italians are affected by premature ejaculation, and another three million are struggling with erectile dysfunction, furthermore one in three Italians has suffered from sexual dysfunctions during their lifetime. Can you explain better what it is and which age groups are most affected?
“10% of the male population is affected by this type of pathology, although a distinction must be made between erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation. By adding the two pathologies, the threshold is exceeded, reaching 20% of the Italian population. Erectile dysfunction obviously increases as age increases because it depends on the blood flow inside the penis. Premature ejaculation is instead due to the lack of a substance, serotonin, in the brain. Currently, drugs are used that can increase the level of serotonin, and they are truly very effective drugs.”
The study also shows that 38% of Italians have resorted to pharmacological aid at least once to confirm their virility…
“Yes, and in young people this problem is on the increase, especially because many young people nowadays use substances that enhance erection even without actually needing them. It is a sort of pharmacological doping.”
How many go to an andrologist and what is their average age?
“Definitely in the recent years, patients have been going to the doctor more, both to receive more information and because various taboos have now fallen, but also because pathologies are on the increase. Currently a third of those who go to the andrologist are under 40, while two thirds are over 40″.
