Risk factors for erectile dysfunction: known and unexpected facts (review)

The prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) among men over 50 years is 31-51 %. By 2025, the prevalence of ED is expected to increase to 322 million men worldwide. In Russia, according to academician D.Yu. Pushkar', ED suffers up to 89.9 %.In this regard, it seems very important to establish the causes of this condition. The purpose of this review is to assess the current state of the literature on the issue of risk factors leading to or associated with the development of ED.The presented works show that well-known factors play a role in the occurrence of ED: unfavorable environmental conditions, harmful lifestyle factors, chronic intoxication, obesity, genetic predisposition, deficiency of sex hormones and vitamins, diseases of the cardiovascular system, prostate and urethra, as well as drugs for their treatment. Also, new indicators in laboratory and instrumental studies that change with ED are considered.Among the well-known data, there are also some very original works devoted to this topic. The relationship between ED and reproductive disorders, psoriasis, periodontitis, human immunodeficiency virus infection and some drugs use is now being investigated, which is presented in this review.