Prevalence of Peyronie's disease among patients with erectile dysfunction

To assess the prevalence of Peyronie's disease (PD) among patients with erectile dysfunction (ED).

A total of 1,440 male patients with ED were enrolled in this study. Patients were interviewed for ED using the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF). All patients were also screened for socio-demographic data and risk factors for ED that included age, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, Ischemic Heart Disease (IHD), and psychological disorders. The diagnosis of PD was based on a palpable penile plaque or acquired penile curvature. Patients underwent routine laboratory investigation in addition to testosterone and prolactin assessment.

Mean ages +/-SD were 54.1 +/- 6.9 (range 42-71) and 52.5 +/- 11.9 (range 20-84) years for patients with and without PD respectively. Of the patients, 11.8% had mild, 38.3% had moderate and 49.9% had severe ED. 7.9% of the patients had PD. Significant associations between PD and both the longer duration and the increased severity of ED were detected. There were also significant associations between PD and the following socio-demographic risk factors of ED: age, obesity, smoking, duration and number of cigarettes smoked per day. Concomitant diseases and medical comorbidities such as diabetes, dyslipidemia, psychological disorders and the presence of at least one risk factor were significantly associated with PD in patients with ED.

Peyronie's disease was not rare among the study population. There were significant associations between ED risk factors and PD. Further studies are needed to investigate how much ED and PD influence each other.