Impotence & Erectile Dysfunction Support Group
Erectile dysfunction or impotence is a sexual dysfunction characterized by the inability to develop or maintain an erection of the penis for satisfactory sexual intercourse regardless of the capability of ejaculation. There are various underlying causes, such as diabetes, many of which are medically reversible. The causes may be physiological or psychological.
Was your pituitary disease caused by head trauma?
Our son committed suicide in August last year, and we think we know why.
When he was seven he fell from a tree and fractured his skull. He was unconscious for five days and we were afraid we would lose him, but amazingly, he recovered. He seemed to develop normally in his teens, yet after his death we discovered that he had never managed full sex with his girlfriend in all their four years together. This was something we'd never dreamed of. We knew he'd had depression, especially when she left him six years ago, but we never imagined this.
Searching for an explanation, we found research showing that a quarter of moderate/severe traumatic brain injury survivors will have pituitary damage. The problems may not start straight away, in fact the onset may come years later. There were cases where diagnosis was delayed by 42 years. Mild brain injury, we found, can sometimes cause hypopituitarism too - sometimes so mild that the person has forgotten it and has to be reminded by relatives. The symptoms vary, but frequently include loss of libido and infertility, and associated depression. And it's treatable!
You are more than three times more likely to commit suicide if you've had a head injury. We wish we'd known.
We collected more and more research, eventually filling two fat lever arch files. Yet, amazingly, we found that most hospitals and doctors still do not realise the risk, or screen patients' hormone levels. We have spent the past year emailing and phoning, and things are slowly starting to change. But this doesn't help people like our son who slipped through the net in the past.
Do you think your pituitary disease may have been caused by an earlier head trauma, even one many years ago?
Here is a link to some research.
http://adc.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/93/5/364
Our son committed suicide in August last year, and we think we know why.
When he was seven he fell from a tree and fractured his skull. He was unconscious for five days and we were afraid we would lose him, but amazingly, he recovered. He seemed to develop normally in his teens, yet after his death we discovered that he had never managed full sex with his girlfriend in all their four years together. This was something we'd never dreamed of. We knew he'd had depression, especially when she left him six years ago, but we never imagined this.
Searching for an explanation, we found research showing that a quarter of moderate/severe traumatic brain injury survivors will have pituitary damage. The problems may not start straight away, in fact the onset may come years later. There were cases where diagnosis was delayed by 42 years. Mild brain injury, we found, can sometimes cause hypopituitarism too - sometimes so mild that the person has forgotten it and has to be reminded by relatives. The symptoms vary, but frequently include loss of libido and infertility, and associated depression. And it's treatable!
You are more than three times more likely to commit suicide if you've had a head injury. We wish we'd known.
We collected more and more research, eventually filling two fat lever arch files. Yet, amazingly, we found that most hospitals and doctors still do not realise the risk, or screen patients' hormone levels. We have spent the past year emailing and phoning, and things are slowly starting to change. But this doesn't help people like our son who slipped through the net in the past.
Do you think your pituitary disease may have been caused by an earlier head trauma, even one many years ago?
Here is a link to some research.
http://adc.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/93/5/364
I also wish doctors asked more about sex as a risk factor for their physical and mental health.
Hugs!