The Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Erectile Dysfunction in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Xu Wu, Yuyang Zhang, Wei Zhang, Guodong Liu, Houbao Huang, Hui Jiang, Xiansheng Zhang
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Erectile dysfunction (ED) may be common in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but its prevalence and risk factors still remain debatable. AIM: To evaluate the prevalence of ED in the IBD population and the potential role of risk factors in the development of ED. METHODS: An extensive search in the PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science was performed to identify relevant English-language articles published up to December 2021 that evaluated the prevalence of ED on IBD patients. The included studies were evaluated by 2 independent reviewers for eligibility. We used an adapted Assessment Tool for Prevalence Studies to evaluate the quality of enrolled studies. Data were analyzed and graphed using the STATA software (version 16.0; Stata Corporation, College Station, TX, USA). The ORs with 95% CIs were pooled using a fixed or random-effects model according to heterogeneity. Subgroup analysis was performed to explore the source of heterogeneity. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to evaluate the stability of the results. OUTCOMES: The pooled prevalence of ED in IBD patients was calculated, and the OR value and 95% CIs were used to assess the strength of the association between IBD-related risk factors and ED. RESULTS: = 0.0%). The pooled prevalence estimates of ED were 30, 33, and 17% in the age <40, IIEF diagnostic tool, and IPAA surgery subgroups, respectively. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: IBD patients had a significantly increased prevalence of ED, indicating that erectile function in men with IBD should be concerned by clinicians. STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: The strength of this study is that this is the first meta-analysis to assess the global prevalence and risk factors of ED in IBD patients. A limitation is that the results after pooling the included articles showed significant heterogeneity. CONCLUSION: The results of our meta-analysis and systematic review provide evidence of the high prevalence and risk factors of ED in IBD patients. Wu X, Zhang Y, Zhang W, et al. The Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Erectile Dysfunction in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. J Sex Med 2022;19:950-960.