Book dossier

The new injection treatment for impotence

by Gorm Wagner

In the sixties, our concepts about the etiology of sexual disorders were still completely erroneous, and treatment was so ineffective that many patients who suffered from what we now think of as minor erection difficulties were doomed to a life of chronic impotence. Now this volume by two of the world's leading experts on sexual disorders describes what is the most dramatic, safe, and effective treatment of male impotence yet developed. This major breakthrough, known as intracavernosal injection treatment (ICI), is capable of providing a large majority of patients with normal erections that can last from 30 to 60 minutes. Drs. Wagner and Kaplan offer professionals accurate, timely, and in-depth information about ICI, addressing both its medical aspects and psychological strategies for successful adaptation to the injections. After reviewing the development of injection therapy and effective pharmacological agents, Dr. Wagner shows how the diagnosis of erectile dysfunction is made, stressing the importance of a proper "old fashioned" medical history along with a variety of tests that pinpoint the etiology of the dysfunction. He describes how and when ICI should be used, and also clarifies the ethical issues surrounding the procedure. In the second half of the book, Dr. Kaplan addresses the psychiatric aspects of the new injection treatment. She emphasizes the need for an in-depth understanding of the psychic infrastructure of a patient's sexual symptoms, and, where relevant, the dynamics of a couple's relationship. Illuminating case studies address the various problems of resistance to the therapy that may occur. Dispelling the myth that people lose interest in sex as they age, Dr. Kaplan devotes an entire chapter to injection therapy with patients over fifty. She provides current data on the effects of age on human sexuality, underlining the importance of successful adaptation to these changes. In the final chapter, Dr. Kaplan describes the combined use of sex therapy and ICI as a potentially successful treatment method for certain cases of psychogenic erectile dysfunction, while stressing caution and spelling out limitations. The New Injection Treatment for Impotence is a highly informative, clear, and realistic description of this new and effective treatment. It will provide doctors and sex therapists with the means to significantly improve the sexual and emotional lives of their impotent patients - safely and effectively.