Men’s experience and use of treatments for ED.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An exploration of men’s experience and use of treatments for erectile dysfunction (ED).
IRAS ID
207576
Contact name
Kathleen Mulligan
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
City University London
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 30 days
Research summary
Background: Erectile Dysfunction (ED) is defined by the National Institute of Health (NIH) Consensus as the persistent inability to attain and maintain a penile erection adequate for sexual performance. ED has a negative impact on both the man and his partner’s quality of life (QoL). If treated successfully QoL can be improved. However, adherence rates for ED treatment have been shown to be suboptimal. A recent systematic literature review (PROSPERO: CRD42015023341) carried out by the applicants indicates that rates vary widely across studies which may relate to the finding that to date no research has explored what factors influence ED treatment adherence using appropriate research methods.
Aims: Carry out an in-depth exploration of factors that influence use of ED treatment.
Design: Sequential exploratory design involving 2 phases. In the first phase, we aim to recruit 12 men with ED to participate in a single semi-structured interview which will ask about their experience of using treatment for ED. The second phase will consist of a 3 month quantitative longitudinal follow-up study to identify predictors of treatment use using a theoretically informed approach. We aim to recruit 191 men with ED who will be asked to complete a questionnaire about factors that influence their use of ED treatment.
Outcomes: The purpose of this study is to understand what barriers and enablers men experience when faced with using treatment for ED. This will be done through the use of an established theoretical approach to the exploration of barriers and enablers as well as the use of a validated measure of adherence. To the research teams knowledge this would be the first study of its kind to utilise such methods to explore this research question and therefore would lay the foundation for future theory and evidence based interventions to help adherence in this population.REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/NE/0333
Date of REC Opinion
12 Oct 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion