The use of acupuncture in the treatment of erectile dysfunction

Abstract

The ef®cacy of acupuncture as a mono-therapy was evaluated in a pilot study of 16 patients suffering from erectile dysfunction (ED). In nine patients no organic co-morbidity was encountered. In a period of four weeks, acupuncture treatment was performed twice a week for a total of eight sessions. Each treatment session consisted of puncture of the same eight acupoints, four of which were connected to a Swiss made constant current Doltron ESA 600 stimulator. Low frequency electrical stimulation (5 Hz and 10 mA) was applied to these four acupoints, whereas no stimulation was applied to the other four points. After 30 min, the electrical stimulation was terminated and all needles removed. Blood samples were drawn according to a ®xed time schedule, to study the pro®le of a number of stress hormones, for example, adrenocorticotropic hormone, antidiuretic hormone and cortisol, the gonadotrophines follicle stimulating hormone and leutinizing hormone, and the sex steroid testosterone and its binding globulin, within the treatment period. Based on a diary of both patient and partner, and an interview one month after the end of treatment, the changes of sexual activity were evaluated over a period of 12 weeks, starting from the four weeks prior to the treatment, the four weeks during the treatment period and the four weeks after the treatment. An improvement of the quality of erection was experienced by 15% of patients, while 31% reported an increase in their sexual activity. No changes in the pro®les of hormones were detected. The use of acupuncture as a mono-therapeutic modality in ED, did not in¯uence the pro®le of the stress and sex hormones, but did improve the quality of erection and restored the sexual activity with an overall effect of 39%. No de®nite conclusions can be drawn from this pilot study. A controlled and blinded study including more patients will be needed before any de®nitive conclusion can be reached.

Acupuncture for Erectile Dysfunction in a Non-Diabetic Haemodialysis Patient: A Case Report

“…9 Changes of sexual hormones were tested to explore the role of acupuncture on the activity of pituitary-gonadal axis, although no signifi cant correlation were observed between the clinical improvement and the biological profi les, 13 as seen in this case. Currently, none of these hypotheses has been fully established yet.…”

Acupuncture in the treatment of psychogenic erectile dysfunction: first results of a prospective randomized placebo-controlled study

“…[4][5][6][19][20][21][22][23] To our knowledge, only three papers on the use of acupuncture in erectile dysfunction have been presented in the international, peer-reviewed literature. [8][9][10] In addition, our study represents the first attempt to conduct a randomized, prospective trial, where acupuncture is tested against a valid placebo treatment. To enable better comparison of both treatment arms, we refrained from the use of oral placebos or placebo-needles, where the tip is not placed intradermally.…”

“…In median, the number of treatment sessions was 6.2 (range 4-10) and 11 (range [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] in the placebo group and in the treatment group, respectively. We could not observe any side effects according to acupuncture therapy.…”

“…4-7;22-26 Furthermore, some studies have demonstrated a beneficial effect of acupuncture in patients with psychogenic erectile dysfunction, which prompted us to initiate a prospective, placebo-controlled trial. [8][9][10] Material and methods In all, 21 consecutive patients with psychogenic erectile dysfunction and without any prior therapy were recruited between January 1999 and December 2001. Informed consent was obtained from all patients, and the study itself was started with the approval of the local ethics commission.…”

“…In group 1 (treatment group), n ¼ 10, acupuncture was done at the standardized spots used in the treatment of erectile dysfunction (N6, N27, KG4, KG6, LG4, MP6, B23). 8,9,10,12 In group 2 (placebo group), n ¼ 11, acupuncture was done at points used in the treatment of headache (G39, M41, M25). Acupuncture at these spots has no known effects in the treatment of sexual disorders.…”