Covid linked to impotence

 Covid symptoms can linger for months.

If this won’t get men vaccinated, nothing will: Scientists are examining whether one of the long-term symptoms of Covid is erectile dysfunction. The link has been reported by hundreds of doctors and scientists in Europe, North America, and elsewhere, with wildly varying estimates of how common it is, reports The New York Times. 

One study found that Covid boosted risk of erection problems by 20 percent; others suggested it made the onset of impotence much more likely. There are several possible explanations for the link. One is that the pandemic has led to a surge in anxiety and depression, which can make it harder for men to perform in the bedroom. 

Another is that Covid can deprive people of the ability to taste and smell, which plays an important role in sexual arousal. But a physiological cause is also possible—a reduction of blood supply to the penis. The coronavirus can damage blood vessels, preventing them from constricting and stretching. Such vascular problems often show up in the sex organs first, because the vessels there are much smaller than elsewhere in the body. 

Whatever the cause, health officials urge men suffering from erectile dysfunction to seek help, as it can become more difficult to treat over time. “If you’re having these problems, do not wait,” says Mike Hsieh, from the University of California, San Diego. “For the most part, we can get the guys’ sex lives back.”

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