Erectile dysfunction in a sub-saharan African population: Profile and correlates in a tertiary care hospital

Background: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a common complaint in general medical practice. This study describes the clinicodemographic features of ED. Materials and Methods: Two hundred and twelve subjects in the outpatient clinic of a tertiary care hospital were interviewed for demographic data, tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, history of medications, previous abdominal surgery, history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension and ED, duration of ED if present, self-assessment of the level of sexual satisfaction, partner's assessment of the level of sexual satisfaction, type of remedies sought and used for ED in the past, whether or not subject has discussed the problem and patients' perception of the cause of the ED, all were interviewed with the international index of erectile function questionnaire for ED. Data was analyzed as appropriate. Results: Forty-two (19.8%) had ED and ED score was associated with age (P = 0.013), educational level (P < 0.001), monthly income (P < 0.001), alcohol consumption (P = 0.026), type of abdominal surgery done in the past (P = 0.002), self-rating of ED (P < 0.0001), partner rating (P < 0.0001), partner complaint (P < 0.0001), and frequency of complaint (P < 0.0001), it was however not significantly associated with marital status (P = 0.133), tobacco smoking (P = 0.259), quantity of tobacco smoked in pack years (P = 0.370), duration of ED (P = 0.141), drugs taken (P = 0.680). 77 (36.3%) never discussed ED before, 40 (19%) claimed that someone else was responsible, and only 15 (7.1%) had taken a phosphodiesterase inhibitor. ED score correlated negatively with fasting blood sugar with a trend toward significance (r = −0.134, P = 0.064). Conclusion: ED may be more frequent in the population studied considering the level of knowledge and attitude.