Evidence is mounting that erectile dysfunction is one of the symptoms of long Covid.
The phenomenon was identified by Italian researchers in April, when they discovered that COVID-19 was associated with a six-fold increase in developing erectile dysfunction. Urologist weren’t surprised by the link – the coronavirus is known to damage blood vessels, which are key to achieving an erection – but more research was needed to establish a definitive connection.
In July, the Patient-Led Research Collaborative provided more data. It surveyed 6,500 people across the globe who were previously infected with COVID-19. National Geographic explains the results:
About 18 percent of men reported sexual dysfunction; some 13 percent experienced pain in their testicles; 8 percent noted other sex organ issues; and about 4 percent of men had a decrease in the size of their penis or testicles.
Ranjith Ramasay, a Miami-based urologist, told National Geographic that those results are consist with what he’s observed:
At first Ramasamy and his colleagues at University of Miami Hospital’s urology clinic thought that the growing reports of sexual dysfunction represented a psychological issue, the result of pandemic stress. But many patients said they weren’t feeling anxious or depressed, and for some, the problem lasted six months or longer. Then the team started to suspect another underlying cause: the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.
“We found that men who hadn’t previously had these issues developed pretty severe erectile dysfunction after COVID-19 infection,” Ramasamy told the outlet.
Ramasamy and his team eventually conducted biopsies on six men ages 20 to 87 who had died of COVID-19.
“When they examined these tissue samples under an electron microscope, they discovered virus particles lurking in one man’s testicles. Half of the men also had poor sperm quality, backing up data from other small postmortem studies and raising questions about the disease’s impact on fertility,” National Geographic explains.
Ramasamy also studied penis tissue samples from two men who reported erectile dysfunction after battling COVID-19. More from National Geographic:
The virus was indeed present in their penis tissue, which was shocking, Ramasamy says, given the time frame: It had been up to eight months since the men were first infected. The doctors also found damage to the lining of the organ’s tiny blood vessels.
Writing in USA Today, urologist Marcos Del Rosario Santiago explains that the preliminary link between COVID-19 and erectile dysfunction “is one more tool we can use to persuade those hesitant to get vaccinated to take another look at the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccines.”
He adds, “And let me, as a doctor who helps men who have erectile dysfunction, affirm that there is no — repeat no — scientific evidence to support rapper Nicki Minaj’s assertion to her 22.6 million Twitter followers this week that the COVID vaccines can cause impotency or “swollen testicles.”
