PART I – BASICS
WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR POTENCY PROBLEMS?
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PART I – BASICS
WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR POTENCY PROBLEMS?
Impaired potency is the most common male sexual malfunction.
We make a distinction between:
▶ the inability to have sex because the penis does not function
▶ the lack of sexual desire (libido)
▶ problems with the ejaculation or the orgasm; premature ejaculation (ejaculatio retardata) and the orgasm without an ejaculation (retrograde ejaculation) and
▶ problems with fertility.
The above mentioned problems can either appear individually or in a combination.
In the 1970s as psycho-therapeutic medicine started to become more established, it was said that 90% of all male sexual malfunctions were due to psychological problems. Because at this time neither the structure of the penis nor its function was understood, impotency was a white spot on the map. Courageous scientists started to discover at least parts of this spot. New examination techniques and therapeutic measures appeared, were given an ovation and were partly thrown away again. At the beginning of the 1990s it was thought that men had problems getting an erection due to organic causes.
During the course of their life, about 50% of all men experience a temporary episode of inability to have sex. 15-25% of all men who consult a physician talk about sexual problems. Chronic erection problems are significantly increasing when getting older. At the age of 60 one fourth already suffer from permanent impotence.
It is well known and almost trite to mention that a lot of different factors play a role with impotence. These symptoms can have totally different causes for the individual patient. In principle, primary malfunctions with potency can be differentiated from secondary. Primary malfunctions become obvious when first becoming sexually active. With secondary malfunctions there is a period of an undisturbed sex life and impotency does not become a factor until later on in life.
3.1 What is Impotence?
Impotence is a term bearing strong negative associations. It is looked at as a handicap of the man. Medically one speaks about an erectile dysfunction or impaired erection ability, a disorder, not a handicap. Impotency is defined as the inability to get a sufficient stiffness of the penis to have sex. This does not mean the short-termed “failure” of a man but the erectile dysfunction of a longer duration. Some men and couples can handle this situation really well. Only when the person concerned or the relationship of the two suffers from this condition one can talk about an impotence that has to be medically examined.
Problems with sexuality can harm an intact relationship and can even be the reason for split-ups. This especially is the case in new relationships in which sex often plays a more important role than it does in longer lasting relationships. Sexuality does not always take first part in relationships but often it plays an important part in a well-balanced, harmonic relationship. A constant lack of it can cause tension between the partners and be a strong burden on the relationsh
