The extinction of erectile function in males begin long before the age of 60, in their forties. However, namely in sixties the process of erection deterioration acquires almost inevitable character.
Actually, most men after 60 have some problems with achieving and/or maintaining an erection, these symptoms clinically constitute ED. At this period, gentlemen experience severe drop in necessary hormonal levels, develop serious cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, etc.
What Are Causes of Decreased Sexual Potency in the Elderly?
When a male reaches a middle age, production of testosterone in his body begins to naturally decrease. This leads to worsening of libido and erection. There also might be other factors that negatively affect erectile function. Among them are:
- physical labor, which becomes burdensome with years
- psychoemotional stress
- bad environmental conditions, living in areas with manufacturing facilities which emit harmful substances
- improper nutrition, diet with excessive amount of fats and fast carbs, which cumulatively worsens the health with the course of time
- smoking which badly influences condition of the cardiovascular system
- alcohol abuse which leads to artificially caused decrease in testosterone production, worsens the work of the liver
- systemic use of some drugs intended for treating depression and other disease
- administration of poor-quality supplements, consumption of low-quality food products etc.
- injuries and surgeries affecting the integrity of vascular vessels and genital nerves
Sedentary lifestyle is also a considerable causative factor. In old age, men begin to be less physically active due to subjective and objective reasons. Subjective ones include the absence of desire to do physical exercises or at least walk a lot. Objective reasons usually include problems with joints, age-associated weakening of the musculature.
How to Treat Erectile Dysfunction After 60?
Anyway, erectile dysfunction requires systemic treatment which includes adjustments of the diet, medicamentous therapy, psychotherapy (if needed), etc.
With presence of psychogenic factors, there is a need for psychotherapist. Despite that psychological erectile dysfunction occurs mostly in young men, it can also affect gentlemen in old age. Sexual fears may lead to impossibility of achieving an erection.
If a patient adheres to an improper diet, there is a need of its correction. Say, overconsumption of unhealthy fats badly affects not only the condition of erectile function but the condition of the cardiovascular system as a whole. It is recommended to eat more fruits and vegetables, replace fatty read meat with marine fish, eat less fast carbohydrates which are contained in sweets, soft drinks, non-whole-grained pasta, and other everyday products.
The last but not least, drug treatment is necessary in many cases, as in this age the body loses many of its restorative abilities, so it needs some external support in the form of medications. The list of the most popular pharmaceuticals for ED treatment includes Viagra, Cialis and other medications from the class of PDE5 inhibitors. They act in the similar way: through the inhibition of PDE5 enzyme which interferes with natural erection processes. When it is suppressed, the blood receives more room for inflow, as a result, penile erection improves.
Pros and Cons of Using Cialis and Viagra After 60
Pros are obvious, Viagra and Cialis are effective in 60-80% of cases, depending on the dosage and other factors. They act symptomatically, allowing a male to achieve hard-rock erection in 30-60 minutes after administration. The duration of Cialis’ action is much longer than that of Viagra, it works for 36 hours, while the blue pill provides desired effect for 4-6 hours after ingestion. Using one of these medications (Viagra and Cialis co-administration is contraindicated), a man receives a chance to maintain sex life in such an age.
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Let’s switch to cons of using Cialis and Viagra. These anti-ED medications may dangerously interact with some medications that are used by males of this age. In particular, they cannot be combined with nitrates, drugs for treating angina. Viagra should be used with caution when a patient takes antihypertensive drugs, and the cannot be administered in case of arterial hypotension (as they act as light vasodilators).
Patients with renal insufficiency and severe liver diseases are recommended to take no more than 25 mg of sildenafil (Viagra) per day, Cialis cannot also be taken in the highest doses. The efficient dosage should be chosen individually for each patient based of his anamnesis (medical history), concomitant use of other medicines, and severity of erectile dysfunction.
Extreme caution is also needed when a patient has anatomic deformation of the penis (Peyronie’s disease) or predisposition to the development of priapism, a long-lasting and painful erection which doesn’t disappear for over than 4 hours.
