Low serum folic acid can be a potential independent risk factor for erectile dysfunction: A prospective case–control study
International Urology and Nephrology Dec 18, 2018
Attia AAA, et al. - Researchers compared 60 patients with erectile dysfunction (ED) with 30 healthy control participants in terms of their serum folic acid (FA) levels. In addition, they evaluated its correlation with other well-known confounders for ED. Patients having any hormonal disorders, Peyronie’s disease, or decompensated systemic illnesses were excluded. A validated Arabic version of the abbreviated five-item form of the International Index of Erectile Function was used to evaluate ED, and confirmation of ED was achieved by penile duplex. Patients and control participants had a median FA levels of 7.1 ng/mL and 13.4 ng/mL, respectively. Further, the investigators identified significant relations between serum FA with diabetes mellitus, hypertension, smoking, age, and cholesterol. According to results, as ED severity increased, serum FA level decreased even after adjustment of age, serum testosterone, diabetes, hypertension, and smoking. FA deficiency appeared to be an independent risk factor of ED, with the best cut-off point to detect patients with ED of ≤ 9.42, sensitivity of 80.00%, specificity of 93.33%, and area under curve of 91.3%.
-
Exclusive Write-ups & Webinars by KOLs
-
Daily Quiz by specialty
-
Paid Market Research Surveys
-
Case discussions, News & Journals' summaries