Comorbidities Associated with Erectile Dysfunction Following Radical Prostatectomy at a University Hospital

Abstract

Prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer among men. The main therapeutic approach is radical prostatectomy (RP), which exposes patients to erectile dysfunction (ED) as a postoperative risk. In the present retrospective study, records were analyzed of 431 patients submitted to RP. The prevalence of ED in the sample was 84.7%. Higher Gleason scores denote greater disease aggressivity and predispose patients to a greater use of tadalafil in the postoperative period. Older patients and those with high PSA levels used fewer medications for ED, possibly due to the lower response to the drugs. Moreover, ED following RP was correlated with anxiety and depression, predisposing patients to a greater use of medications for ED at the onset of treatment. Adjunct therapy to RP (hormone blocking and/or radiotherapy) was associated with a higher frequency of persistent ED. Thus, age, Gleason score, anxiety, depression, diabetes mellitus and adjunct therapy are variables that predispose patients to a higher incidence of erectile dysfunction following radical prostatectomy.