Erectile Dysfunction (ED) is a medical condition where a man is not able to achieve or maintain an erection long enough for satisfactory sexual performance. It happens due to a complex combination of factors, such as neurological, vascular, hormonal, and psychological imbalances.
ED is becoming more common around the world, with about 52% of men experiencing some degree of ED according to a study in Massachusetts. Other studies show that about 19% of men aged between 30-80 years have ED. This problem affects a person’s quality of life and can cause distress to the patient and their partner.
Several factors contribute to ED, including aging, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, lack of exercise, smoking, low testosterone levels, cardiovascular disease, nerve injury, and Peyronie’s disease. Diabetes is a growing problem around the world, and men with diabetes usually experience ED earlier than those without it. They are also more likely to experience it, and it can be more severe and harder to treat.
The cause of ED in diabetic patients is complicated and involves various factors such as the impairment of the vascular endothelium, reduced smooth muscle volume, neural degeneration, and fibrosis. High blood sugar levels in diabetic patients cause smooth muscle dysfunction by damaging low-density lipoproteins, increasing the production of free radicals, and inducing mitochondrial fragmentation and cellular apoptosis. This leads to endothelial dysfunction and decreased production of Nitrous Oxide (NO) in the cavernous tissue.
Although most patients with ED can be treated successfully with medication such as phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5 inhibitors), only about 50-60% of diabetic patients report improvement. This may be due to endothelial dysfunction in diabetic patients, which reduces the production of NO. Therefore, alternative therapies are required to cure ED in diabetic patients.
There is new hope for diabetic patients with ED through the use of Stem Cells (SCs) therapy. This is a recent development that may offer a cure for ED in diabetic patients. A study, Safety and Potential Therapeutic Effect of Two Intracavernous Autologous Bone Marrow Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells injections in Diabetic Patients with Erectile Dysfunction: An Open Label Phase I Clinical Trial, looked into the potential effects of stem cell therapy on patients with diabetes who suffer from ED.
Results of the Study
In the recent study, stem cell therapy has shown promising results for diabetic patients with ED. Eligible patients received two injections of ex-vivo expanded autologous BM-MSCs. These injections were given intracavernously, one at the beginning of the study and the second after 30 days. Patients were advised not to take any ED medication during the study.
Tolerability and safety were closely monitored, with patients assessed for pain and adverse reactions. Vital signs were also checked and patients were questioned about any symptoms of discomfort. Laboratory tests were performed at the start of the study and repeated at each follow-up appointment.
Efficacy of the treatment was assessed by asking patients to complete questionnaires about their sexual function at follow-up appointments. The results of these questionnaires were evaluated to determine the effectiveness of the treatment.
Patients reported mild pain during the procedure, but there were no serious side effects or adverse reactions. Physical exams showed that there were no changes in vital signs from baseline, and no significant changes were found in hormonal levels or other laboratory results.
Four patients participated in the study, and three of them showed improved sexual function scores on follow-up appointments. The results were not consistent across all patients, but there was an overall significant improvement in sexual function in those who responded to the treatment. All patients had a better Erection Hardness Score (EHS) at the third month after the initial injection.
The new treatment offers a minimally invasive alternative for ED caused by diabetes and could be an option for those who do not respond to traditional treatments. Although the study involved only a small number of patients, it demonstrated the safety and effectiveness of this new treatment approach. As a result, the researchers are now planning to recruit more patients to further evaluate this treatment’s efficacy.
The study suggests that SCs therapy is safe and well-tolerated for ED patients, and it may be a promising treatment option. However, more research is needed to determine the effectiveness of this therapy for larger groups of patients with ED.
