Chennai: At least one third of the men who attended an online survey said they suffered from erectile dysfunction. At least one in five of them said they had premature ejaculation.
The survey was done by Akash Infertility Treatment Centre and Dr Kamaraj Men’s Specialty Hospital.
The survey had been conducted through a helpline with 13,820 participants, including 11,510 men, for two years.
“We have seen a rapid increase in sexual dysfunction in our clinics,” said hospital founder Dr T Kamaraj.
“There are two reasons for the increase in sexual diseases. Firstly, an increase in uncontrolled hypertension and diabetes along with a sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy diet and use of gadgets like laptops and mobile phones,” he said.
The second reason, according to Dr Jayarani Kamaraj, is an increase in the number of women who report to the hospital with sexual problems. “Women come to us for low libido. We have seen an increase in demand for female Viagra too,” she said.
“We have analysed the questions and doubts people raised using the helpline,” he said.
“We tell them there is no direct equivalent for sildenafil citrate (generic name for Viagra) in women. Most markets in the West have medications approved to treat low sexual desire in women. These aren’t popular in India yet,” she said.
The results of the survey are yet to be peer-reviewed or published in a medical journal.
The hospitals will organise a five-day exhibition on sexual disorders starting Wednesday. During the exhibition, doctors will counsel patients and offer tests for up to Rs 4,000 free of cost.
“We will show them various therapy options available to treat sexual dysfunctions and infertility. This includes stem cell therapy,” said Dr Kamaraj.
“It is an emerging therapy, and we are seeing good results in patients with sexual dysfunctions,” he said.
