Erectile dysfunction and diabetes: a study in primary care

This study set out to determine whether there has been an increase in awareness of ED amongst men with diabetes following the introduction of oral therapy and whether there is an association between ED and QoL. Current perceptions of 157 men with diabetes were compared with the results of a 1997 survey. Those who reported ED (66/157) completed a questionnaire assessing the impact of ED on QoL. Patients are more aware of ED now than in 1997; more treatments are now offered in primary care. The results demonstrated a weak, but significant, association between awareness of therapy (represented by the number of treatments of which patients were aware) and QoL. Patients who were aware of treatments had a significantly worse QoL than those who were unaware.