Debating Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder Diagnosis

Time (http://tinyurl.com/hypoactive-sexual-desire 11/17, Elton) reported that a “psychiatric condition known as hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD), defined as a distressing lack of sexual desire, absent other medical conditions — has been notoriously difficult to pin down,” but “that doesn’t keep” pharmaceutical companies “from trying to develop a treatment, seduced by the prospect of a multibillion-dollar blockbuster.” Such efforts “have reignited a decade-long debate over the merit of the HSDD diagnosis — the most commonly diagnosed female sexual dysfunction — which some psychologists say is a made-up condition.” Nevertheless, some researchers theorize that “women with HSDD have low levels of testosterone” or at least do “not deny that there is a biological cause of low libido.”

Read Full Post »

Dialogue about sexual dysfunction since debut of Viagra helped physicians identify other health problems.

CNN (Park, 12/10) reported, “Since Viagra’s (sildenafil citrate) appearance on the market, the dialogue about sexual dysfunctions has helped doctors identify other health problems in their patients,” physicians say. “Dr. Chris Steidle, a urologist who wrote the book Sex and the Heart,” said that “you always hear someone drops dead.” But, Dr. Steidle added, “It’s not sudden death if you couldn’t get an erection. It’s a symptom of a heart condition.” Furthermore, he said, “You wouldn’t ignore a stroke, but you would ignore erectile dysfunction (ED) — it’s a significant symptom.” Dr. Gerald Melchiode, a Texas psychiatrist, said that “the man’s penis is like…’the canary in the mines,’ which serves as an indicator of overall health.” Dr. Melchiode noted that “there’s now good evidence that shows that men with ED who have no other symptoms of anything are at increased risk for heart attacks and strokes.”

Read Full Post »