Persistent erectile dysfunction following radical prostatectomy; study

A recent study at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, targeted men who underwent radical prostatectomy (RP) for localized prostate cancer, had functional erections prior to RP, developed postoperative erectile dysfunction (ED).

Study concluded that failure to recover erectile function after RP may result from venous leak as a sequela of neuropraxia-induced erectile tissue damage. Venous leak portends a poor prognosis for erections recovery as well as phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor (PDE5i) response.