New Research Finds That COVID Can Cause Erectile Dysfunction
Tuesday, March 08, 2022
There have been a number of recent studies that are finding COVID can have a significant impact on Erectile Dysfunction. The latest study this past week suggests why it may be happening.
COVID cases are dropping across the country and in Rhode Island. The number hospitalized in Rhode Island has dropped below 100 for the first time in more than six months.
But during the course of the past two years, more than 100,000 men in Rhode Island have been infected with COIVD.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST
What has been seen?
The full implications and damage of COVID infection are not yet completely known. The virus was only identified a little over two years ago, and more is being learned every day. Studies on the impact of COVID infection on reproductive organs are only now coming out.
Several recent studies have documented an increased incidence of Erectile Dysfunction and impotence in men that have had COVID. A study last month in Sexual Medicine of 246,990 men who had COVID infection, found a significant increase in new onset Erectile Dysfunction. Men who had COVID had a 20% greater rate of Erectile Dysfunction compared to those who were not infected.
Urologists United has found that men who have had COVID are six times more likely to develop Erectile Dysfunction than those who have not been infected.
Another study in the Journal of Andrology found that men who have had COVID were 5.6 times more likely to develop Erectile Dysfunction. The study also looked at men who presented with Erectile Dysfunction and found they were 5.2 times as likely to have had a previous COVID infection.
A study from the University of Florida published in the Journal of Endocrinological Investigation found that men who have had COVID are 3.3 times more likely to develop Erectile Dysfunction.
A study in the World Journal of Men’s Health found that even six to eight months after COVID infection, the virus was still present in men’s penises.
A large meta-analysis in the journal Sexual Medicine Reviews found 60 studies documenting the development of Erectile Dysfunction in men after COVID infection.
A clinical account from Healthy Male in Australia has even reported that in addition to causing Erectile Dysfunction, COVID infection can decrease the size of (“shrink”) the erect penis.
Why is this happening?
It might not be obvious why what seems to be a respiratory disease would so severely also impact the genitals. As with many things involving COVID, the facts are more complicated.
The COVID virus does enter the body through, and cause great damage to, the lungs. However, after it enters our body a primary target of the virus is our blood vessels, the vasculature.
Many studies have now shown that the COVID virus causes its greatest damage to us by attacking our blood vessels, both by causing clots and the damage resulting from such thrombosis, and by directly attacking the lining of our blood vessels, called the endothelium.
The COVID virus thus goes wherever there are blood vessels – which is everywhere in our body, throughout our organs and tissues. Studies have shown that the virus persists in our bodies long after the initial symptoms of infection have passed, up to and beyond seven months.
Tissues and organs that are especially rich in blood vessels are the ones most damaged by COVID infection, in particular, the brain, and the heart.
Blood vessels are also very important to and found in high density in the penis. When a man has an erection, it’s not caused by muscles, wires, or internet porn images. An erection happens when blood flows into and fills the vessels of the penis, like a balloon being filled with fluid. Any damage to these blood vessels can interfere with the ability to get or maintain an erection. The damage the COVID virus does to the inside lining of the blood vessels of the penis impairs blood flow, making it more difficult to have an erection – and thus causing Erectile Dysfunction, impotence, and testicular pain.
The latest report, submitted last week to the journal Northwestern Medicine, specifically studied and confirmed that the COVID virus infects the penis, testicles, prostate, and related blood vessels, early in infection and at high concentrations.
“The signal that jumped out at us was the complete spread through the male genital tract,” said Dr. Thomas Hope, lead investigator and professor at Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine.
There is still so much that is unknown about COVID. But it’s clear the virus will continue to surprise us, usually in unpleasant ways. The latest findings that COVID can cause Erectile Dysfunction are yet another reminder of the risks in not taking the virus seriously enough, and trying to declare victory, and “moving on” too soon. Underestimating the dangers of COVID has a habit of turning out badly for us, with unimaginable long-term consequences.
As Neil DeGrasse Tyson said, “The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe it.”
Nick Landekic is a retired scientist and biotechnology executive with over 35 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry.
Related Articles
- Nurses Union: “Unequivocally Opposed” to RI’s Decision to Allow COVID Positive to Return to Work
- Omicron Rampages Through RI - 150 COVID Deaths Recorded in December
- 3 Major COVID Developments - Omicron Impact on Children, CDC Policy Change (Again) & Schools Closing
- New COVID Guidance Announced for Rhode Island Schools
- Nurses Criticize RI Hospital’s Management Over Operational Changes Tied to COVID
- RI Correctional Officer Carchia Dies From COVID-19, According to Dept. of Corrections
- CDC Makes Major Policy Change for Quarantining for COVID Infections
- RI Breaks Record for Daily COVID Cases — 28 More Deaths Over Weekend
- COVID Kills 16 More in RI - More Testing Availability Announced
- COVID Transmission Rate Explodes in RI — Now Over 1,200, Over 3,000 New Cases
- It Took RI 10 Months To Reach 100,000 COVID Cases, We Could Top It in January Alone
- COVID-19 Divides Us Even Further Apart - Horowitz
- 5 Major COVID Developments - Why Omicron’s Decline May Be Very Slow
- City of Providence to Distribute At-Home COVID-19 Tests This Afternoon
- RI COVID Cases Begin to Decline, Deaths Continue at Highest Pace in 11 Months
- RI Suffered More Than 260 COVID Deaths in January – Why Booster Shots Are Critical
- McKee Extends COVID Emergency Declaration to March 4 - Masks in Schools Through Feb. 14
- RI Pandemic Record: State Hits New High for Number of COVID Hospitalizations
- It’s Not Just COVID Closing Restaurants - Michael Bissanti
- PC-UConn Game Saturday Postponed Due to COVID Issues in Providence Program
- McKee Announces Federal Emergency Medical Personnel Coming to RI for COVID Support
- Yep, I Got COVID - Dr. Ed Iannuccilli
- McKee Announces Major Changes to RI’s COVID Policies
