PTU - Polskie Towarzystwo Urologiczne
list of articles:

Sexual activity versus risk factors of atherosclerosis and changes in hormonal levels in young men
Article published in Urologia Polska 2007/60/4.

authors

Jolanta Słowikowska-Hilczer, Krzysztof Kula, Katarzyna Marchlewska, Elżbieta Oszukowska, Anna Gumińska, Sylwia Jastrzębska, Edyta Kramek, Eliza Zawadzka, Renata Walczak-Jędrzejowska
Zakład Endokrynologii Płodności Katedry Andrologii i Endokrynologii Płodności Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Łodzi
Zakład Andrologii Katedry Andrologii i Endokrynologii Płodności Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Łodzi

keywords

men, sexual life, sex hormones, atherosclerosis risk factors

summary

The aim of the study. The purpose of the paper was to examine alleged sexual disorders in the population of young men age 20-39 in Łódź, the related reduction of sexual satisfaction, and to identify the reasons.

Material and methods. Data on sexual life were achieved from 80 men aged 20-39 years. Measurements of body weight, height, waist and hip circumferences, arterial blood pressure were carried out. Blood levels of total cholesterol (TCh), LDL cholesterol (LDL-Ch), HDL cholesterol (HDL-Ch), triglicerydes (TG), sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), FSH, LH, total testosterone (TT), dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEA-S) and estradiol were determined. Body mass index (BMI), waist to hip ratio (WHR), free testosterone index (FTI), T free and bioactive were calculated.

Results. Mild erectile dysfunction (ED) were reported by 31.4% of 20-year-old men and by 15.6% of 30-year-old men, and severe ED by 3.1% of 30-year-olds. Mild disturbances in achieving orgasm (OD) were found in 15.8% of 20-year-old men and 9.4% of 30-year-olds, while severe OD was present in 3.1% of 30-year-olds. Level of sexual needs negatively correlated with age (p=0.04), and positively with DHEA-S blood concentration (p=0.04). Sexual satisfaction significantly increased with age (p=0.02), BMI (p=0.03), waist circumference (p=0.03), WHR (p=0.04), blood concentration of TCh (p=0.007), LDL-Ch (p=0.007) and TG (p=0.02), negatively correlated with concentrations of TT (p=0.004), T free (p=0.04), T bioactive (p=0.03) and DHEA-S (p=0.02). With the advancing age concentration of SHBG increased, estradiol and FTI decreased. Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed in 17.5% of men (20-year-olds – 13.6%, 30-year-olds – 22.2%).

Conclusions. In men below 40 ED appears mainly in mild form, but is much more frequent than reported before. In addition, the decrease of FTI with age and high incidence of atherosclerosis risk factors create a potential danger of severe sexual dysfunction. The level of sexual needs decreases with age, but sexual satisfaction increases despite metabolic syndrome development and lower level of androgens in circulation.