Objectives: Over 50% of elderly men and 70% of male cardiac patients suffer from erectile dysfunction (ED). Although pharmacotherapy is effective and safe, it only brings a short-term improvement and may cause side effects. Low energy shock-wave therapy (LESWT) is a promising causative modality for the treatment of ED. The evidence is still limited with different results obtained using different devices. The aim of this work was to evaluate evidence from randomized controlled trials regarding the efficacy of LESWT generated by an electrohydraulic unit for the treatment of ED.
Methods: A systematic review of the literature was conducted in PubMed on May 20th, 2018 and supplemented by a Google search of grey literature, as well as a hand search of the bibliographies of retrieved articles. Out of 34 studies, 5 studies on 354 patients were included in the quantitative synthesis.
Results: The studies evaluated an abridged International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5), the Erectile Hardness Scale (EHS) and Flow-Mediated Dilatation (FMD). The meta-analysis revealed that LESWT improved the IIEF-5 score (mean difference: 5.16; 95% CI, 1.39-8.93; p=0.0073) and EHS score (risk difference:0.72; 95% CI, 0.73-0.80; p<0.001). Reporting of FMD was inconsistent and not analyzed. The meta-analysis of studies conducted with electrohydraulic devices showed greater benefits to patients in comparison to the meta-analyses of heterogeneous studies conducted using various devices for generating shock waves.
Conclusions: Evidence exists that LESWT generated with an electrohydraulic unit is effective. Further research is needed in order to evaluate this method in different patient populations and for the long-term.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Investigation on the Heating Effects of Intra-Tumoral Injectable Magnetic hydrogels (IT-MG) for Cancer Hyperthermia.
Biomed Phys Eng Express
January 2025
Biomedical Engineering , University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee College of Engineering and Applied Science, 3203 N Downer Ave, Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53211-3029, UNITED STATES.
Capacitive-based radiofrequency (Rf) radiation at 27 MHz offers a non-invasive approach for inducing hyperthermia, making it a promising technique for thermal cancer therapy applications. To achieve focused and site-specific hyperthermia, external material is required that efficiently convert Rf radiation into localized heat. Nanomaterials capable of absorbing Rf energy and convert into heat for targeted ablation are of critical importance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPrey depletion, interspecific competition, and the energetics of hunting in endangered African wild dogs, .
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
February 2025
Swansea Lab for Animal Movement, Biosciences, College of Science, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales SA2 8PP, United Kingdom.
Large herbivores are in decline in much of the world, including sub-Saharan Africa, and true apex carnivores like the lion () decline in parallel with their prey. As a consequence, competitively subordinate carnivores like the African wild dog () are simultaneously experiencing a costly reduction in resources and a beneficial reduction in dominant competitors. The net effect is not intuitively obvious, but wild dogs' density, survival, and reproduction are all low in areas that are strongly affected by prey depletion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLow-power artificial neuron networks with enhanced synaptic functionality using dual transistor and dual memristor.
PLoS One
January 2025
School of Electronic Science Engineering, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, India.
Artificial neurons with bio-inspired firing patterns have the potential to significantly improve the performance of neural network computing. The most significant component of an artificial neuron circuit is a large amount of energy consumption. Recent literature has proposed memristors as a promising option for synaptic implementation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFConstructing an Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Solid-Electrolyte Interface In Situ via an Organo-Polysulfide Electrolyte Additive for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces
January 2025
School of Material Science and Engineering, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center for Photovoltaic Science and Engineering, Jiangsu Province Cultivation Base for State Key Laboratory of Photovoltaic Science and Technology, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
Lithium (Li) metal's extremely high specific energy and low potential make it critical for high-performance batteries. However, uncontrolled dendrite growth and an unstable solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) during repeated cycling still seriously hinder its practical application in Li metal batteries. Herein, we demonstrate a facile and effective approach to fabricate a flexible and robust hybrid SEI layer using two kinds of organo-polysulfides with different sulfur chain lengths [bis(3-(triethoxysilyl)propyl)disulfide (Si-O-2S) and bis(3-(triethoxysilyl)propyl)tetrasulfide (Si-O-4S)] as the additives in the electrolyte.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEffect of Fluorophilic- and Hydrophobic-Modified Polyglycerol-Based Coatings on the Wettability of Low Surface Energy Polymers.
Langmuir
January 2025
Institut für Chemie und Biochemie, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustrasse 3, 14195 Berlin, Germany.
Catechol-derived polymers form stable coatings on a wide range of materials including challenging to coat low surface energy polymers. Whether modification of the coating polymer with fluorophilic or hydrophobic groups is a successful approach to further favor the coating of hydrophobic or fluorophilic surfaces with catechol-based polymers remains ambiguous. Herein, we report the effect of a series of catechol-derived polyglycerol (PG)-based coatings and monolayer coatings on the wettability of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polystyrene, and poly(methyl methacrylate) surfaces.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!