Objective: To determine the relationship between premature ejaculation (PE) and serum and seminal plasma magnesium levels, in a case-control study.
Patients and methods: Thirty-eight patients referred to the authors' urology outpatient clinic were evaluated in two groups; cases comprised 19 men complaining of PE, defined using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV criteria and an intravaginal ejaculatory latency time (IELT) of <1 min, and a control group of 19 married men with a normal IELT. All men had a history taken, a systemic physical examination and laboratory studies. After organic and psychogenic disorders were excluded, the 19 patients were included in the study. Seminal plasma and serum magnesium levels were determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometry.
Results: The mean (sd) plasma magnesium level was 94.7 (10.9) mg/L in the cases and 116.7 (11.6) mg/L in the controls. There was a significant relationship between seminal plasma magnesium, but not the plasma level, and PE (P < 0.001 and 0.597 respectively).
Conclusion: PE is significantly related with a lower level of seminal plasma magnesium. The pathological physiology of this relationship requires more investigation.