The development of medications that help with the symptoms of erectile dysfunction (ED) brought the condition into conversation, and these drugs help many men struggling with the stigma of impotence and ED. The condition is very common, affecting about 40% of men at age 40, rising to 70% at age 70.
While medications offer temporary relief of ED, what they don’t do is improve conditions long-term. They aren’t a cure. There are many contributors to ED, both physical and psychological, though when blood flow is a factor, there’s now a treatment that offers the potential to reverse the physical conditions that impair erectile ability.
Choosing shockwave therapy from LaSara Medical Group, a health clinic that specializes in treatment of erectile dysfunction, you’re assured of your best chance to overcome — permanently — the effects of ED.
ED and blood flow
Frequently, impaired blood flow is a major contributing cause of ED. Erections are formed by blood flowing into the penis at a rate that’s temporarily greater than the outflow. When blood vessels are blocked with plaque, the movement of blood isn’t sufficient to achieve or maintain an erection.
That, in turn, can cause confidence issues when you discover a system that once worked autonomously is now interrupted. As with other vascular plaque problems, you can turn to diet changes and exercise to reduce issues over a long term, but you may not see a reduction in ED issues fast enough for your liking.
The shockwave principle
Treating vascular conditions with sound waves may be an option for some men with ED. Shockwave therapy, short for low-intensity extracorporeal shockwave therapy or Li-ESWT, uses technology similar to that used to break up kidney stones using sound waves, but at a lower intensity with a wider target area.
It’s a nonsurgical office procedure that resembles another medical technique: ultrasound imaging. The shockwave applicator superficially resembles an ultrasound transducer, and it’s used in a similar fashion, though along the length of the patient’s penis, using a conductive gel to improve conduction, just as ultrasound imagers use.
The sound waves can loosen plaque deposits to improve the internal diameter of penile blood vessels, and they can even encourage the formation of new vessels for additional blood flow. Treatments are drug-free and require no anesthetic or other preparation. A typical treatment lasts up to about 30 minutes, and there’s no need for recovery time after a session.
The only long-lasting ED treatment
Aside from lifestyle changes, shockwave therapy is the only treatment for ED that isn’t episodic, meaning that it’s not designed to produce an erection for a single encounter. Medications, injections, and other therapies must be used each time an erection is desired. Shockwave therapy is the only treatment that works to cure underlying issues preventing erectile response.
To find out more about shockwave therapy or to learn if you’re a candidate for treatment, contact LaSara Medical Group, which has locations in Los Angeles, San Diego, and Orange County, California, to schedule a personal and confidential consultation. Treating ED is the focus of the practice, so you’ll receive the advice and treatment that’s right for your condition. Call today, or send a message to the team here on their website.