/ Health Concerns / Men's Health

Premature Ejaculation

Basics

Erectile dysfunction (ED) occurs when a man is either completely unable to achieve an erection, can only do so inconsistently, or is unable to maintain an erection for long enough to engage in satisfactory sexual activity. Several factors can contribute to ED, including certain medications, nerve and tissue damage (often due to illness), smoking, lack of physical activity, emotional or psychological stress, and injuries to the penis, bladder, prostate, pelvis, or spinal cord.

Treatment with Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine

Acupuncture and Chinese medicine are commonly used to address ED. Frequently used acupuncture points include SP6 (Sanyinjiao), ST29 (Guilai), and BL23 (Shenshu). Common herbal formulas for treating ED include Jin Gui Shen Qi Wan, Liu Wei Di Huang Wan, Zuo Gui Wan, and You Gui Wan.

There is positive evidence supporting the use of acupuncture for ED. A 2016 systematic review by Cui, including 3 randomized controlled trials with a total of 183 participants. One trial demonstrated the benefits of acupuncture while another trial indicated that acupuncture combined with psychological therapy was more effective than psychological therapy alone.