This is the first study to directly compare side effects of radiation vs. surgery for the treatment of localized prostate cancer in a diverse group of patients. The characteristics of the men who dropped out of the study by 24 months may have affected the results. For example, a higher percentage of non-white men dropped out compared to white men. Those with lower education, income and health status were also less likely to participate. For example, men over 59 said they were less bothered by impotence than younger men were.
Hypertension increases risk and severity of impotence.
A detailed medical survey was filled out by 104 men treated at the outpatient hypertension center at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York. The patients averaged 62 years of age, and 85 percent were sexually active. Researchers compared the results to studies of the general male population of the same age. Also, erectile dysfunction tended to be more severe in patients with hypertension than in the general population. There were no significant differences in the prevalence or severity of erectile dysfunction among patients with different forms of hypertension or among those taking different types of medication.