David, this is a very different reponse, though, than your previous one.
There was the guest editorial and three peer-reviewed articles. Each costs
$26. http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/toc/jsm/2/5
Have you read them? I haven't. But the abstracts are free for the viewing.
The meta-study is the most interesting to me. It surveys the English
language medical literature from 1981-2004, finding 21 published articles
and abstracts between 1999 and 2004, 35 total.
Were all the people who wrote all these articles biased by selling saddles?
Did they all concern themselves with only those under treatment? If so,
this seems inconsistent with the findings of the approx 4% incidence rate
attributed to cyclists.
I'm not saying you're not right. Medical studies are of notoriously poor
quality. Researchers have plenty of biases even if they're not selling
anything.
But it seems to me that more specifics are needed from you given the
abstract. I'm definitely interested if you have them.
Roy
---------------- abstract of the meta-study ---------------
Introduction. From 1999 to 2004, there had been 21 publications from
multiple medical specialties (sexual medicine, urology, neurology,
cardiology, biomedical engineering, sports medicine, emergency medicine,
and officials from the National Institute for Safety and Occupational
Health) investigating the relationship between bicycle riding and erectile
dysfunction (ED). In the previous 18 years, there have been 14 such
studies.
Aim. The primary aim was to summarize accumulating data on the safety of
bicycle riding based on medical evidence categorized by levels of evidence,
including case reports, observational studies, case control studies,
mechanistic studies, and population-based epidemiologic investigations. The
secondary aim was to address the concerns of bicyclists and propose
measures to minimize the risk of ED associated with bicycle riding.
Methods. An English-language medical literature review was made of
publications in peer review journals from 1981 to 2004, including published
abstract presentations at major medical meetings.
Main Outcome Measure. Ranked published epidemiologic data on bicycle riding
and ED.
Results. Bicycle riding more than 3 hours per week was an independent
relative risk (RR = 1.72) for moderate to severe ED. In case control
studies, the prevalence of moderate to severe ED in bicyclists was 4.2% and
4% vs. age-matched runners 1.1% (P <= 0.018) and swimmers 2% (P = 0.05),
respectively. Therefore, bicycle riders should take precautionary measures
to minimize the risk of ED associated with bicycle riding: change the
bicycle saddle with a protruding nose to a noseless seat, change the
posture to a more upright/reclining position, change the material of the
saddle (GEL), and tilt the saddle/seat downwards.
Conclusions. The mechanism is hypothetically related to the rider
interaction with the bicycle saddle at the perineum-saddle interface.
Straddling bicycle saddles with a nose extension is associated with
suprasystolic perineal compression pressures, temporarily occluding penile
perfusion and potentially inducing endothelial injury and vasculogenic ED.
Huang V, Munarriz R, and Goldstein I. Bicycle riding and erectile
dysfunction: An increase in interest (and concern). J Sex Med 2005;2:596-
604.
"David L. Johnson" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:
Quoted message said:Roy Gordon said:Dr. Goldstein's statement is excessive and inflammatory.
However, the following one, appearing later in the article, is not.
Your personal experience does not contradict the results of the
studies. Just as some (many?) smokers not developing lung cancer does
not contradict the fact that smoking causes lung cancer.
The relationship between smoking and cancer (and heart disease) is
substantial and causal. The "correlation" between riding and
impotence is anecdotal, based only on studies of those who came under
treatment (can you say control?), and biased by the fact that these
doctors represent particular saddles as a cure.
