Impotence is more frequent in men than perhaps is thought after national surveys in the United States show that ten percent of men between 18 and 59 have a problem attaining or sustaining an erection and between the ages of 40 and 70 this increases to an amazing fifty two percent. Study into male impotence is going on all around the world and some surprising statistics have been produced that show that in the United States alone the figure for men who need impotence treatment could be as high as 30 million and as low as 18 million.

Successful impotency interventions have been shown to improve closeness and gratification, improve sexual aspects of quality of life and ease symptoms of depression. Premature ejaculation is not, as many people think, an erectile problem and accordingly it does not impotency treatment.

Any impotence interventions should commence with those that are the least invasive first and prior to this, any drugs that could be detrimental should be stopped. Psychotherapy and behavior modifications are looked at next, followed by vacuum devices, oral drugs, topically injected drugs, and surgically embedded cylinders and very rarely, surgery on the penis itself.

Utilising the male’s partner, impotency treatment methods can be used that help relax and reduce the man’s anxiety when he thinks about the problems he has with sexual intercourse. These techniques can also help ease stress when physical impotence is being treated.

Impotence interventions that use drugs can be based around those taken by mouth, injected or inserted into the penis. After many trials, the wonder drug Viagra was given approval by the American FDA in March 1998, taken an hour prior to sex it was the first oral impotence treatment for males. While Viagra increases the response to sexual arousal, it does not create an automatic erection as injected drugs do and should not be used more than once each day. One impotence treatment with drugs, substitutes the testosterone employing a tablet taken by mouth for males that have low amounts of natural testosterone but it is still unclear just how much of its success is owing to the placebo effect.

When injections directly into the penis are used as an impotence treatment, the erection is the result of the penis becoming full of blood. However, a continual erection and sometimes scarring, are unwelcome result utilising this type of treatment. Pellets inserted into the penis via a pre-filled applicator are able to give an erection in as little as ten minutes and can last up to an hour.

Vacuum cylinders that encase the penis are a form of impotence treatment that uses a partial vacuum to draw blood into the penis thereby creating an erection. Once the vacuum cylinder is removed an flexible band is put around the base of the penis to preserve the erection during sexual intercourse.

Owing to the size of the problem, impotence treatments are improving all the time so prior to any decision is made it is worthwhile speaking to your doctor first. Prior to using any form of drug or device for treating impotence, prescribed or not, it is worthwhile investigating any possible side effects.