Background: The erectile dysfunction (ED), represents a very common complaint for men over forty years old.
Aim: The purpose of the study was to evaluate if flat magnetic stimulation (FMS) technology could help individuals with symptomatic erectile dysfunction.
Methods: A total of 40 patients with a mean age of 43 (±10.4) (range 21-53) affected by erectile dysfunction, underwent eight sessions of about 30 min each in a twice a week frequency with the study device. During treatments, every potential side effect was monitored. The International Index Erectile Function (IIEF) and Erection Hardnes Score (EHS) (range 0-4) were selected and analysed before, at the end of the treatment, at 1 month follow up (1MFU) and at 3 months follow up (3MFU).
Results: The IIEF mean value significantly (p<0.001) increased from 22.6 (±2.4) at baseline to 26.4 (±2.7) at 3MFU. The EHS mean score significantly (p<0.001) increased from 2.7 (±0.4) at baseline to 3.4 (±0.6) at 1MFU and the improvement persists for up to 3MFU, thus supporting the clinical usefulness of this treatment.
Conclusions: As compared to other previously employed techniques, this technology has the potential to successfully restore erectile function. This research had limitations as the absence of a control group, a long term follow up and the lack of objective assessments of penile hemodynamics. The study findings showed that FMS represents a promising treatment option for individuals affected by symptomatic erectile dysfunction.
Keywords: Erectile dysfunction; erection hardness score; flat magnetic stimulation; international index erectile function.