Impotence – Causes & Treatments

Female impotence, or female sexual dysfunction, is a catchall term used to describe difficulties in having sexual desire, enjoying sex, being adequately aroused or having an orgasm. A woman may experience decreased sexual desire for a number of reasons including stress and exhaustion. She may be unable to enjoy sex because she has one of several sex pain disorders, which in turn may be caused by an underlying condition. Women with breast cancer or gynecologic disorders may experience sexual dysfunction.

One type of female impotence is analogous to male impotence and may be caused by decreased blood flow to the clitoris during sexual intercourse. Psychosocial factors such as previous or ongoing sexual or physical abuse or an unresolved conflict over sexual identity may also play a role in female sexual dysfunction.

To provide appropriate treatment to a woman suffering from sexual dysfunction, her physician first has to overcome the challenge of separating intrinsic from extrinsic reasons for such dysfunction. Besides pain during sex or the presence of a clear underlying disorder, it may be difficult to distinguish between a woman’s inability to become aroused and have an orgasm from the technique used by her partner to stimulate her. Many women may only be able to have an orgasm through clitoral stimulation but gender roles and other barriers may get in the way of a woman expressing her needs to her sex partner. Mental stimulation plays a major part, if a woman is dissatisfied with her sex partner for other reasons, this may translate into decreased libido with that partner. This is called situational sexual dysfunction and the woman may experience no problems with a partner she considers more appealing.

Where an underlying reason can be identified, female sexual dysfunction is treatable. In many cases, a doctor may recommend counseling for a woman and possibly her partner.

An estimated 10 to 15 million men in the United States suffer from impotence, also known as erectile dysfunction. Some people also use the term impotence to describe other problems such as lack of sexual desire and the inability to ejaculate or have an orgasm. While many people who suffer from impotence suffer in silence, it is a treatable condition at any age. Impotence is sometimes used to describe female sexual dysfunction, which includes the broad categories of reduced sexual desire, pain during sex, inability to become aroused, and inability to have an orgasm.

Male impotence usually has an underlying medical condition that causes nerve or artery damage. Such damage can interfere with the nerve impulses that are needed to start and sustain an erection or with blood flow that is needed to engorge the tissues in the penis to make it erect. Diabetes, surgery, injuries, vascular diseases, kidney disease, and chronic alcoholism are some medical conditions that may cause impotence. Smoking can also cause impotence by narrowing the blood vessels. Since the likelihood of having some of these conditions increases with age, older men are more likely to suffer from impotence. Impotence can also be a side effect of certain drugs such as high blood pressure drugs and antihistamines, or low levels of circulating hormones such as testosterone. As much as 20 percent of all impotence may be attributed to psychological factors such as stress, anxiety, and guilt.

A doctor makes a diagnosis of impotence by carefully examining a patient’s medical history, performing a psychological evaluation, completing a physical examination, and doing some laboratory tests. Depending on what the cause of impotence is in a particular individual, there are a number of treatment options to choose from. These include counseling, drugs, surgery, and vacuum devices. The right treatment depends mostly on the cause and one’s age.