Radical Ways to Treat Impotence

NEW YORK (WPIX) - Here's a radical new way to treat impotence that's hard to believe.

Firing shock-waves into the body, of men with erection problems, can help them get a real charge out their sex life. It works so well, that 15 of the 20 men in a study were able to throw away the pills they'd been taking for erectile dysfunction.

The 20 volunteers in the Israeli study were an average age of 56. They were taking Viagra or similar drugs for impotence.

The treatment, on trial in Israel, uses a mild form of lithotripsy, a technique to treat kidney stones. Waves of sound are beamed through the skin, and although they pass harmlessly through body tissue, they are at just the right pressure to smash up kidney stones into tiny sand-like particles that are then passed out of the body in urine. Several studies show that this form of shock-wave therapy has a beneficial effect on blood vessels.

Dr. Andrew McCullough, director of male sexual health, fertility and microsurgery in the department of urology at NYU Langone Medical Center, calls the shock-wave study in Israel "absolutely experimental" at this stage.

"There is a real charge associated with this treatment," McCullough says. "When people are treated this way for kidney stones, they are under sedation. Also, it is kind of hard to focus the beam where you want it. There are other organs in this region, too, such as the prostate gland and testicles."

Dr. Yoram Vardi, who led the trial in Israel, told the Daily Mail: "Drugs are not a cure. When patients stop taking their medication, then they cannot function. With shock waves, we can do something biological for the problem. These patients can then function without the need for medication."

About 50% of men over the age of 40 suffer from erectile dysfunction.

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The Source: WPIX.com