title: An investigation of erectile dysfunction in Gwent, Wales.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To quantify incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and the associated risk factors in men attending community clinics in a large population in Wales, UK.
  
  
  METHODS
  Of 4060 men who were invited to attend 11 community clinics, primarily to check for prostate disease, 2025 (aged 55-70 years) attended. Of these, 2002 men answered a questionnaire about personal details, medical, family and sexual history, and detailed alcohol and smoking habits. All had their serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) analysed and those referred for investigation of prostatic disease underwent serum testosterone analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Complete ED was reported by 265 men (13.2%), and was closely related to age (r = 0.19, P < 0.001) and medication (r = 0.2, P < 0.001). ED occurred in 6.9% of men aged 55-60 years, 12.5% aged 61-65 and 22.2% of those aged 66-70. Patients taking diabetic medication had the highest relative risk for ED and 11.3% of men with ED were taking nitrates. The numbers of years of smoking had the third closest correlation with impotence (r = 0.16, P < 0.001). A low serum testosterone level was a poor predictor of ED and increasing serum PSA levels did not influence the distribution of ED.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  About 13% of these men aged 55-70 years had complete ED; if this value is extrapolated to the whole of the UK, this equates to almost half a million men being unable to achieve any erections. The estimate would be much greater if those with milder forms of ED are included.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, The Royal Gwent Hospital, Newport, Gwent.
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Green
authors.forename: S T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Holden
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ingram
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bose
authors.forename: D P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: St George
authors.forename: W G
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Bowsher
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D007172:Erectile Dysfunction / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D014852:Wales / Q000453:epidemiology