RESUMEN
OBJECTIVES: The study examined the impact of long term COVID-19 infection on the patients' erectile function and anxiety and depression in the same patients as well as the impact of daily tadalafil 5 mg supplementation on their erectile function. METHODS: Recovered 114 men were evaluated by the validated Arabic version of the international index of erectile function (ArIIEF-5) and the Arabic versions of the patient health questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the generalized anxiety disorder-7 (GAD-7) at time of presentation, at 3 months and at 6 months, respectively. Forty recovered patients who still complained of ED received tadalafil 5 mg daily for 2 months then were evaluated again at 3 and 6 months by penile duplex, the Arabic versions of the patient health questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the generalized anxiety disorder-7 (GAD-7) at the same periods, respectively. RESULTS: At the time of presentation, there was a positive correlation between the severity of COVID-19 infection, ArIIEF-5 and PHQ-9 (r = 0.249, p = 0.008; r = 0.241, p = 0.010, respectively). Most of the patients showed normal penile duplex parameters. There were 40 ED patients at presentation, 5 ED patients at 3 months and 3 ED patients at 6 months, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: ED in COVID-19 patients who were not suffering from chronic illnesses before the affection, is primarily psychological and completely responsive to tadalafil.
RESUMEN
OBJECTIVES: The current study aims to investigate the value of penile elastography in assessing the fibrotic changes in the corpora cavernosa. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Eighty participants were included in the study. These were divided into two equal groups: a study group (group 1) included patients with ED who did not respond to intracavernosal injection (ICI), and an age-matched control group (group 2) included age-matched subjects with normal erection. All subjects answered an International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) questionnaire. The first group was evaluated by two ICI trials of 1 mL Quadmix, each took place 1 week apart, followed by a color duplex/Doppler ultrasonography (CDDU) scan using also a 1 mL Quadmix. All the above was done a week before the penile shear wave elastography (SWE) scan. It comprised a 12-section scan of both corpora cavernosa. Each corpus was scanned in three different segments (proximal, mid-shaft, and distal), and in both longitudinal and transverse axes. RESULTS: Comparisons of the laboratory data were non-significant, apart from the glycosylated hemoglobin which proved significant (P value <.001) in both groups. Also, the IIEF-5 scores were significantly lower in the study group (P value <.001). Significantly higher SWE readings (indicating higher fibrotic) were found in the study group compared with the control group in almost all of the scanned segments and their combinations (P value <.05). CONCLUSION: SWE can effectively assess the fibrotic changes occurring in the corpora cavernosa. Hence, SWE could be utilized as a modality that helps diagnose patients with ED.
