Potent men undergoing radical prostatectomy: a prospective study measuring sexual health outcomes and the impact of erectile dysfunction treatments.

INTRODUCTION: Radical prostatectomy (RP) can have a significant impact on sexual health. The purpose of this study was to measure changes in sexual health after RP, assess the impact of various treatments for erectile dysfunction, and define an appropriate endpoint for maintaining sexual health after surgery.
METHODS: One hundred sixteen men with good preoperative sexual health undergoing RP completed a validated anonymous survey preop and annually thereafter. Subgroup analysis was performed based on the use of erectile dysfunction (ED) treatments. Endpoints for evaluation included an erection adequate for intercourse and a return to baseline in sexual domain scores.
RESULTS: Overall there was a significant reduction in scores after surgery for each of the sexual health questions and the function and bother domains. ED treatments providing an erection adequate for intercourse resulted in domain scores significantly higher than those in men unable to achieve such an endpoint, and comparable to those of men returning to good native erectile function, but still lower than preop. Even in men with good preoperative sexual health, with erections adequate for intercourse postop, the return to baseline rate was only 26% in sexual function and 40% in sexual bother.
CONCLUSION: RP appears to have a significant impact on sexual health. Overall, ED treatments, when providing a functional erection, improve sexual health scores, even comparable to men returning to spontaneous erectile function. Although, men functioning well prior to surgery infrequently returned to their preoperative level of sexual health, even with return of native erectile function or the successful use of an ED treatment.