Sex hormones, erectile dysfunction, and psoriasis; a bad friendship!

BACKGROUND: Sex hormones may play a major role in psoriasis pathogenesis due to their biological and immunological effects on skin. Psoriasis also has a significant impact on patients' sexual function and thus their quality of life.

AIM: In the present study, we investigated serum sex hormones and erectile function in male psoriasis patients compared with healthy controls and correlated these findings with various disease parameters.

METHODS: Serum total testosterone and estradiol were measured by an ELISA technique in 50 male patients with psoriasis and 30 healthy controls. The erectile function of all subjects was assessed by the international index of erectile function version-5.

RESULTS: Patients with psoriasis showed a significant lower serum level of total testosterone, higher level of estradiol, and impaired erectile function relative to healthy controls.

CONCLUSION: The detected hormonal disturbance in male psoriasis patients may be a cause of the associated erectile dysfunction beside the known effect of chronic systemic disease on patients' erectile function.