Covid Cause Erectile Dysfunction? Covid-19 has affected men with increasingly severe mental issues like depression and suicidal thoughts. All these negative thoughts have affected men’s temperaments, they go through sexual health issues such as Erectile Dysfunction. There is evidence of low testosterone levels, decreased blood flow to the penis, and even damaged blood vessels that cause ED in men.
Covid and ED – The Link between Covid and ED in Men
We are all familiar with the issues that Covid-19 has brought like aches, high fever, loss of taste or smell, and so on. However, researchers found that SARS-CoV2 or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 can cause Erectile Dysfunction. They are also trying to prove this link.
Now, a question arises Does Covid Cause Erectile Dysfunction in men? Is there evidence to prove the link between Covid-19 and ED?
This article shows some evidence put by researchers brought to understand how covid-19 can cause ED in men.
How Does Covid Cause Erectile Dysfunction?
A long-term Covid-19 disease has affected men twice as women causing various issues like lowering of testosterone, damaged blood vessels, limited blood flow to the penis, and therefore, erectile dysfunction.
A senior researcher said a virus that enters the blood vessel completely damages them. The damaged blood vessel prevents the proper blood flow to the penis, which is why men find it hard to perform well in the bedroom.
Besides this, a preliminary study shows that there is a 20% rise in ED issue in covid infected men than in men who aren’t infected.
Reason 1: Excessive Release of Stress Hormone
Excessive release of stress hormones has affected men’s libido. The reason was, that men consumed alcohol and excessive smoking. This substance abuse developed blood clots which impacted the blood flow. The limited blood flow to the penis was not enough for erection, and therefore, caused ED in men.
Men with a history of heart attacks suffered a lot of covid-19 because of which they get irregular heartbeat or inflammation in the heart. To cure this, patients take beta-blockers. However, beta-blockers have a side effect of erectile dysfunction.
Reason 2: Virus in the Testicles
Increased level of stress reduces the testosterone level in men. This lowering can be due to lack of motivation, bad eating habits, poor sleep, and lower energy, which was severe in men during the Covid-19 period.
When viruses entered testicles, when testicles cannot generate enough testosterone, this deficiency contributes to decreased energy, libido, reduced muscle mass, and also ED in men.
Besides this, the deficiency of testosterone leads to fibrosis (formation of scar) of the penile tissue which is difficult to cure. Also, reduced level of sex hormones has a direct relation to serious pulmonary diseases like lung and heart failure, which is treated by ECMO.
ECMO is Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in which blood from the heart is pumped out, oxygen is added and carbon dioxide is removed and then oxygenated blood is pumped back to the heart, however, the original functioning of the lungs and the heart stops in men.
Another disease like ADRS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome), which requires diligent ICU care by putting the patient on mechanical ventilation.
Reason 3: Virus affects the testosterone levels
When viruses enter the blood vessels, they generate inflammation in the lining of the vessels. This inflammation forms blood clots. However, when these two issues combine, blood vessels don’t function effectively and supply enough blood to the penis, which in turn, causes erectile dysfunction.
Reason 4: Unhealthy Food and Improper Sleeping Cycle
During the covid-19 outbreak, men had unscheduled sleeping habits, lacked a proper diet, used to eat at their convenient time, and lacked physical activities like sports or workouts.
Lack of proper scheduling and loss of physical activities affected their physical and mental health because of which the following changes happened in their bodies:
- Lack of coordination between body and mind
- Improper transmission of never signals to the body
- Irregular blood circulation
Combining all these things, men found difficulty in blood flow to the penis, which also caused erectile dysfunction.
Reason 5: ED issue with Age
ED issue has no age. Men with 19 age to older men suffer from this issue. However, old men have more chances. This happens because testosterone levels required for erection are lower by age. Due to a reduction in sex hormones, aged men cannot satisfy their partner in bed.
Also, when you are older, after contracting covid-19, you are more prone to high blood pressure, and cardiovascular diseases like heart attack, and diabetes. Due to these ailments, you may find it difficult to upkeep sexual health.
Experiments by Researchers on ED Post-Covid
Researchers wanted to find the link between the SARS-CoV2 virus and erectile dysfunction. They studied that covid-19 patients tend to have more than 5 times the chance of ED issues.
To find a piece of evidence, they took samples of penis tissue of four men affected by Covid-19, among these, one was severely infected and another mild, however, the other two men were not infected.
They diagnosed those four samples with an electron microscope. After careful diagnosis, they found that the tissues of infected men were severely damaged and they had to undergo surgery for ED.
Now, the certain question arises, which are as follows:
Questions by Patients Suffering from ED post-Covid
How long does erectile dysfunction last covid-19?
Well, there is no time limit for erectile dysfunction after you get infected with covid-109, however, if we study the cases of infected men, men with illnesses like brain fog, fatigue, and difficulty in breathing recover early. Therefore, we can analyze that ED can be a long-term issue post covid.
Can vaccination prevent you from getting ED?
There is no surety whether covid vaccines would help you prevent getting an ED. However, if you are mildly affected, there are chances that you get protection from post-covid erectile dysfunction issues.
Conclusion
The studies and experimentations were done by researchers to find a link between ED and Covid-19, however, a strong piece of evidence still needs to be brought and bring clarity on how does covid cause Erectile Dysfunction.
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