Research suggests that doctors may want to add benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) to the list of risk factors for erectile dysfunction (ED).
Although men over 45 should get prostate exams to screen for cancer, BPH is a far more common cause of prostate growth, which will at some point start to happen to most men.
An expanding prostate can press on the urethra, causing difficulty in going to the bathroom, weak or unreliable flow, or the need to get up during the night to urinate. BPH can cause ED as well by pressing on nerves that cause and enable erections.
Key Takeaways:
- Some research shows a link between erectile dysfunction (ED) and early-onset noncancerous prostate enlargement (benign prostatic hyperplasia, BPH).
- The prostate growth a man typically experiences after age 30 is usually non-cancerous, but it can affect urine flow.
- ED and BPH start at around the same time in a man’s life and share the same physiological characteristics.
“It’s starting to look like age-related prostate enlargement contributes to ED”
Read more: https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/all-about-sex/201807/new-risk-factor-erectile-dysfunction