Does the Treatment of Sleep Apnea Improve the Sexual Performance in Men with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome?

Aim: We aimed to investigate the effect of obstructive sleep apnea treatment on sexual performance in the case of obstructive sleep apnea in men with erectile dysfunction. Material and Method: IIEF (international index of erectile function ) form was filled for 141 male patients who admitted with obstructive sleep apnea and with erectile dysfunction and investigated in polysomnography laboratory. All patients were examined at ENT (Ear Nose and Throat ) clinic. Patients in the treatment of surgery and CBAP (continuous positive airway pressure) were evaluated according to the apnehipopne index (AHI). Preliminary report has been done at the 3. month after the OSAS(Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome) therapy for the 23 patients. IIEF form was filled again and symptom scoring has been updated for 23 patients who could be followed after sleep apnea treatment. The age of these patients ranged from 26 to 65 years. Wilcoxon signed ranks, Kruskal Wallis, and Spearman’s rho tests were used to evaluate differences in IIEF scores before and after the treatment. Results: Significant improvement were confirmed at IIEF scores of 23 patients with obstructive sleep apnea who could be followed and treated statistically (p 0.05). Discussion: Sexual performance may decline in patients with obstructive sleep apnea and a significant improvement was detected on sexual performance with apnea treatment in this group of patients.