Evaluation of a progressive treatment program for erectile dysfunction in patients with diabetes mellitus

The aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of a progressive program, starting with simple methods and, when not effective, moving to more complex methods, to treat erectile dysfunction (ED) in patients with diabetes mellitus. A total of 284 diabetic patients with ED entered into a 6-phase program starting with sildenafil citrate (Viagra). Those with contraindications, side effects, or negative response ( erection insufficient for vaginal penetration) were switched to the vacuum erection device (VED), and then progressively ( for failures) to intracavernous injection (ICI), sildenafil citrate + ICI, ICI + VED, and penile prosthesis. Patients were followed for 2 y. Of the 284 patients 276 patients were eligible for sildenafil citrate and 147 (53.3%) responded positively, but 25 (9.1%) patients stopped it soon due to adverse effects. Of 162 patients ( 129 nonresponders, eight noneligible for the sildenafil and 25 patients who dropped out due to adverse effects), treated with VED, 114 (70.4%) responded well, however, only 19 (11.7%) patients agreed to continue its use. Of the remaining 143 patients ( nonresponders, noneligible for the previously mentioned treatments and patients who dropped out due to adverse effects), 103/143 (72%) responded to ICI, 27/40 (67.5%) to sildenafil + ICI, and 9/13 (69.2%) to ICI+VED. Four patients received a penile implant. At the 2 y follow-up, 81 of 284 patients who entered the study (28.5%) were still responding to sildenafil, seven (2.5%) to VED, 113 (39.8%) to ICI, 24 (8.5%) to sildenafil + ICI, two (0.7%) to ICI+VED; 15 (5.3%) had a penile implant. In all 17 (6%) patients reported spontaneous erections, 11 (3.9%) stopped the treatment due to family reasons and 14 (4.9%) failed the treatment. In conclusion, the progressive treatment program for ED seems to be very effective for diabetic patients, yielded a complete response for short-term and 91.2% rate of success at the end of 2 y follow-up.