Library · Disease
Erectile dysfunction
Make it clearer
Erectile dysfunction means not getting, or not being able to keep, an erection rigid enough for satisfactory sexual intercourse.
The central step in an erection is relaxation of the smooth muscle inside the penis, in the corpora cavernosa, the spongy tissue that fills with blood. What starts that relaxation is nitric oxide, a molecule released by the nerve endings, and it triggers the production of cyclic GMP inside the muscle. As it fills, the tissue presses on its own outflow veins, the emissary veins, and the blood stays put.
That is why the failure can come from many places: the arteries of the penis, its nerves, the hormones, or the endothelium, the layer that lines the inside of the corpora cavernosa. And that is why erectile dysfunction goes hand in hand with cardiovascular disease and with diabetes.
In brief
Erectile dysfunction is the inability to get or keep an erection rigid enough for satisfactory sexual intercourse.
The key step is relaxation of the intracavernosal smooth muscle: nitric oxide from the nerve endings starts it and raises cyclic GMP, and the filled corpora cavernosa compress the emissary veins.
As it fills, the tissue presses on its own outflow veins.
Any disease process that affects the penile arteries or nerves, the hormones or the cavernosal endothelium can cause it; it is linked to cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Sources (1)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingErectile Dysfunction, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
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