Boston Medical Group: February 2020

Tuesday, February 18, 2020

Blood Testing For Sexual Health

As human beings, we each are basically a body of cells, composed mostly of bones and blood encased in a large organ, our skin.

Blood, of course, delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away. Cells are mainly red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.

Boston Medical Group offers blood tests. This testing is a part of an overall methodology to ascertain the best treatment options for each patient.

The most abundant cells in vertebrate blood are red blood cells. These contain hemoglobin, an iron-containing protein, which facilitates oxygen transport by reversibly binding to this respiratory gas and greatly increasing its solubility in blood. In contrast, carbon dioxide is mostly transported extracellular as bicarbonate ion transported in plasma. And the way we discover our overall health is most often tied to what’s in and what’s not in our blood.

While blood tests may be very common for patients getting normal or annual checkups, there are certain, specific tests one’s doctor might want to order to evaluate your overall health. These special tests could be needed to ascertain if symptoms or even just general issues like you age, weight, blood pressure or personal habits could be contributing to risks. Even more importantly, they can signal alerts or warning signs of the need for immediate medical attention.

Usually, blood tests don’t require any unusual preparations. But in some instances, you might need to not eat any food for up to 12 hours before the blood draw. Your doctor or assistant usually advises you how to prepare for certain or general blood tests.

A Laboratory draws the blood in order to analyze it. Either whole blood is used to count blood cells, or the blood cells are separated from the fluid that contains them, called plasma or serum.

The plasma fluid is used to measure different substances in the blood. The results can help detect early stages in health problems. This is when treatments or lifestyle changes can work best.

It should be noted that doctors cannot diagnose all diseases and medical problems just with blood tests. There might be other factors utilized to confirm a diagnosis. Symptoms, medical history, vital signs, such as blood pressure, breathing, pulse, and temperature, and results from other tests and procedures administered come into play.

Blood – Your Body’s Information Highway

Your blood can reveal a lot about your overall health. Lab work merely a part of a puzzle piece and can be used to determine what’s going on.

“Blood tests help diagnose, treat, and manage heart disease. Your blood provides many hidden clues about your heart health. For example, high levels of “bad” cholesterol in your blood can be a sign that you’re at increased risk of having a heart attack. And other substances in your blood can help your doctor determine if you have heart failure or face a risk of developing plaque in your arteries (atherosclerosis). It’s important to remember that one blood test doesn’t always determine your risk of heart disease. The most important risk factors for heart disease are smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes.”*

Testing, Testing, One Two… E.D.

“It’s not easy for men to talk about problems in the bedroom. An inability to have sex with penetration can result in a stigma around being unable to perform. Worse, it might mean having difficulties in fathering a child. But it can also be a sign of a dangerous underlying health condition. A blood test can reveal issues beyond problems attaining or sustaining an erection. Read through this article to learn why blood tests are important. A blood test is a useful diagnostic tool for all sorts of conditions. Erectile dysfunction (ED) can be a sign of heart disease, diabetes mellitus, or low testosterone (low T), among other things. All of these conditions can be serious but are treatable and should be addressed. A blood test can determine whether you have a high sugar (glucose) level, high cholesterol, or low testosterone. In men with heart disease, the vessels that send blood to the penis can get clogged, just as other blood vessels can. Sometimes ED can be a marker of vascular dysfunction and atherosclerosis, which results in reduced blood flow in your arteries. Complications of diabetes can also result in a lack of blood blow to the penis. In fact, ED can be an early sign of diabetes in men under 46 years old. Heart disease and diabetes can cause ED, and this can be associated with low T. Low T also can be a sign of health conditions such as HIV or opioid abuse. Either way, low T can result in reduced sex drive, depression, and weight gain.”**

The Boston Medical Group Centers & Your General Health

Having treated hundreds of thousands of men worldwide, Boston Medical Group physicians understand both the physical and psychological effects of sexual dysfunction. With that in mind, all of Boston Medical Group medical centers are built with individual waiting rooms to create comfortable and private patient experience.

All visits are by appointment only to limit the number of patients in the office at any given time. Further, The Boston Method® is designed so that all testing and treatment is completed right there in the office without the need for any off-site travel.

* https://www.leehealth.org/our-services/cardiology/blood-tests

** https://www.healthline.com/health/erectile-dysfunction/blood-tests

Article source here: Blood Testing For Sexual Health

Friday, February 7, 2020

Valentine’s Day. Wherefore Art Thou, Cupid?

Valentine’s Day would not be complete without Cupid, the most recognized symbol of love. Nope, we are not talking about one of Santa’s reindeer. We are speaking of Cupid, the God of Love. It is said that if Cupid shoots his arrow of love and hits you, that you will fall helplessly and madly in love with the next person you meet.

In Roman mythology, Cupid is the son of Venus, the goddess of love. In Greek mythology, he was known as Eros and was the son of Aphrodite.

According to Roman mythology, Cupid fell madly in love with Psyche despite his mother’s jealousy over Psyche’s beauty. While he married her, he also told her never to look at him. He visited her only at night. Her sisters convinced her to look at Cupid despite his warning. So, she lit a lamp one night so she could see him. Cupid then left her.

Psyche wandered aimlessly for a time, searching in vain for Cupid. She happened upon the temple of Venus. Venus, looking to destroy her, gave Psyche a series of perilous tasks, each one more difficult and previous than preceding one. Her final task was to deliver a little box to the underworld and get some of the beauty of Proserpine. She was warned not to open the box. But again, curiosity overcame her and she opened the box. There was nothing in the box but deadly slumber.

Cupid, who really loved Psyche all the while, came upon her lifeless body. He forgave Psyche and swept the deadly slumber back into the box. The gods then made Psyche a goddess. – source: holidayinsights.com

Cupid and Psyche is a story originally from Metamorphoses (also called The Golden Ass), written in the 2nd century AD by Lucius Apuleius Madaurensis (or Platonicus). The tale concerns the overcoming of obstacles to the love between Psyche (“Soul” or “Breath of Life”) and Cupid (Latin Cupido, “Desire”) and their ultimate union in a sacred marriage. Although the only extended narrative from antiquity is that of Apuleius from 2nd century AD, Eros and Psyche appear in Greek art as early as the 4th century BC.

Since the rediscovery of Apuleius’s novel in the Renaissance, the reception of Cupid and Psyche in the classical tradition has been extensive. The story has been retold in poetry, drama, and opera, and depicted widely in painting, sculpture, and even wallpaper.^[5] Though Psyche is usually referred to in Roman mythology by her Greek name, her Roman name through direct translation is Anima. – source: Wikipedia

Boston Medical Group Extends a Happy Valentine’s Day to All

Sources for text and art:

http://www.holidayinsights.com/valentine/cupid.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cupid

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cupid_and_Psyche

What would cupid do without his arrow?

Article source here: Valentine’s Day. Wherefore Art Thou, Cupid?

Wednesday, February 5, 2020

Overcoming Intimacy Issues While Dealing with Prostate Problems

Old-fashioned beliefs suggested erectile dysfunction to be psychological in origin. While anxiety and stress are factors that can cause ED, scientific advances now provide proof that in a majority of cases, it is traced back to physical conditions which interrupt nerve functioning and restrict blood flow.¹ Diabetes, arthrosclerosis, cardiovascular conditions, as well as some types of prostate disease and their treatments are responsible for most cases of ED.³ This article will focus on how prostate diseases have impacted erections and sexual activity.

Erection is a matter of synchronous body function, which fills the penile tissue with blood, allowing it to swell and stand erect. This process requires an orchestrated mechanism, lead by blood vessels, endocrine system, and the nervous system, and obviously, any interference can affect the quality of an erection.² Nitric oxide promotes vasodilatation while neurotransmitters such as norepinephrine and acetylcholine increase the production of chemicals such as guanosine monophosphate, prostaglandins, and polypeptides which initiate the erection process by shifting chemical gradients in the muscles and capillaries of the corpora cavernosa, which runs along the shaft, causing inflation and swelling of the penis.¹

It is important to understand how conditions such as prostate disease can interrupt the above mentioned process, leading to abnormal erections or inconsistency in the erectile functioning. It is also helpful to realize limited erections for one or two nights does not mean you have ED.

Prostate Cancer

Sudden and frequent erectile problems can be a symptom associated with prostate cancer, so a prostate-specific antigen, PSA test, accompanied by a rectal exam is performed to assess the situation.

Prostate surgery to remove tumors is often associated with the high risk of nerve damage or cardiovascular complications due to the site specificity of such surgeries. Many choose radical prostatectomy, which only 25% to 80% of men can regain their abilities to maintain any erection.¹ Patient’s medical background and the surgeon’s experience are often taken into consideration when evaluating the chances to regain sexual abilities after a surgical procedure.⁴ Rehabilitation takes up to eighteen months, and that alone takes away from the sexual functioning of men in many cases. Radiation therapy very often harms erectile mechanisms, as both the radiation beam and the radiation-emitting seeds implanted in the prostate can severe the nerve and the muscle cells.²

Hormone therapy is another treatment option which men with prostate cancer opt-in for, but such medication such as goserelin and leuprolide may also translate to ED symptoms, since interference in the endocrine system can greatly impact the erectile mechanism.⁶

Benign Prostate Hyperplasia

BPH is a non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate, which can greatly impact erectile and ejaculatory function. An enlarged prostate, does not lead to ED, rather some of the treatments used for this condition can lead to ED. Finasteride is an example of an anti-testosterone which is used to treat BPH, can cause reduction in libido, and in turn switch off the erectile engine in men. Transurethral resection, a surgical procedure used in the reduction of the prostate gland has also failed to skip ED as one of its side-effects.⁶

Prostatis

Simply known as the inflammation of the prostate gland, prostitis can be acute, or chronic, which is either caused by an infectious agent or not respectively, can trigger ED in many men. Aside from pain, frequent urination, and discharge from the penis, this condition can directly cause ED. It can also be accompanied by painful ejaculation and lack of sexual pleasure for men. The infection can clear in several weeks if treated, but the chronic form can be a permanent problem for some men.⁷

However, there is no need to panic. Every failed attempt to maintain an erection is not ED. When the male genitals don’t get hard enough, or it loses the rigidity and softens soon after an erection, there might be some speculations about ED. It might take longer to get an erection, and in other occasions, the erection might not be as firm or last as long. With such conditions witnessed regularly, it would be time to contact your doctor, and figure out a way to stop this condition in its tracks. With all the new medical discoveries and pharmaceutical advances, a right solution for you might be easier to access than you might imagine.

Diagnosis Methods*

In order to confirm a case of erectile dysfunction, a visit to your primary care physician, urologist or ED specialist would be required. Below is a table from Harvard Health Publishing which summarizes the procedure followed by doctors for each possible cause of erectile dysfunction:

Possible cause of erectile dysfunction	What the doctor does
Vascular (circulatory system)	Takes your blood pressure and listens to your heart. Checks pulse in groin and feet. Checks your abdomen for aortic aneurysm.
Neurological (nervous system)	Tests reflexes of your knees and ankles, as well as anus. Checks for sensation in your legs and feet.
Hormonal (endocrine system)	Assesses testicular size and breast development. Checks your thyroid gland.
Local (reproductive system)	Examines your penis for Peyronie’s disease. Checks your prostate.
Psychological (stress, anxiety, emotional)	Assesses the history of the problem, especially whether it started suddenly and if nocturnal erections are affected.

*Table from Harvard Medical School’s Health Publishing: Sex and Prostate (2009)¹

Doctors who specialize in ED treatments often use advanced diagnostic equipment to measure: blood flow, nerve sensitivity, and hormonal levels.

Treatment Method

Despite the fact that there is no definite cure for ED, we can remain hopeful on not giving up sexual activities due to such conditions that limit our sexual abilities. We live in an era where we are offered multiple treatment options to overcome such limitations and to regain the sexual abilities and cravings. Men with prostate diseases might be at most risk for developing ED, right next to cardiovascular disease patients, inactive individuals, and individuals who do not pay attention to their diet and mental health.⁷ Overcoming erectile dysfunction while dealing with prostate cancer is not an easy job but we can’t sit around and hope for a miracle to happen. The first step for a healthier sex life post-diagnosis of a prostate disease is the will and determination to make it happen. The next step is contacting specialists and evaluating the treatment options available to you. You can also help the recovery and treatment by remaining active, consuming a balanced diet, and taking the treatment seriously. Below is a list of all the modern and most popular treatment options available:

Therapy	Duration of Action Mechanism	Effectiveness Duration	Pros	Cons
IC Injections (ICP, Fx)	10-15 Minutes	30-75 Minutes	Highly Effective (98%), Few side effects	Training required; Injection might be uncomfortable for some men; may cause pain or priapism
Sound Wave Therapy (Rejuvapulse)	While In Use	Long-term	Non-invasive, Effectiveness varies (up to 85%), Non-pharmaceutical	Takes longer to see results.
Sildenafil (Viagra)	30-60 Minutes	3-5 Hours	Oral form, Effective (70%),	Not suitable for men with cardiovascular diseases or on blood pressure medication and nitrates. Side-effects.
Vardenafil (Levitra)	15-30 Minutes	3-5 Hours	Oral form, Effective (70%)	Not suitable for men with cardiovascular diseases or on blood pressure medication and nitrates. Side-effects.
Tadalafil (Cialis)	30-45 Minutes	2-3 Days	Oral form, Effective (70%)	Not suitable for men with cardiovascular diseases or on blood pressure medication and nitrates. Side-effects.
Alprostadil Pellets	Immediate	While In Use	Effective for some (80%)	Requires training; may cause burn; awkward and might cause bruising
Penile Bands	Immediate	While In Use	Needs adjustment. Cheap	Tricky to use
Stem cell Technology	On-going sessions	Long-term	Next-Gen; Permanent results; Personalized	Expensive

There are some misconceptions about this condition which gives an inaccurate image to many individuals dealing with erectile dysfunction.

MYTH: Erectile dysfunction only affects the elderly.

FACT: After the age of 45, almost 1 out of 2 men experience some sort of ED. It is true that ED occurs more prevalently as men age, however, men can retain their erectile functioning well unto their 80s, but it is medication and age-related conditions that exaggerates the occurrence of ED.³

MYTH: Men must accept and live with erectile dysfunction.

FACT: Effective and modern treatment options are readily available. Contact an ED specialist.⁴

MYTH: ED is a psychological disease.

FACT: Studies show only 10%-30% of ED cases are linked with psychogenic factors. Vascular disorders, abnormalities, nerve damage, endocrinologic disorders and prostate problems build up the remaining 70%-90% of ED cases.³

MYTH: Erectile dysfunction is not common.

FACT: A case study found 52% of Americans have some degree of ED between the ages of 40 to 70 years, and approximately 35% had moderate to severe ED.³

Sources:

Article source here: Overcoming Intimacy Issues While Dealing with Prostate Problems