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Pfizer
launch new consumer advice website on erection issues:
The first
website to offer interactive personal erection advice goes
live
today: www.ErectionAdvice.co.uk. Through
sophisticated interactive
techniques
and tailored real life examples, the site will provide 'real
men'
in the real world who are concerned about erection problems with
private
access to a wealth of information and advice on erection issues.
As
well as answering their concerns, the site will help men prepare to
pproach
their GP for help and provide them with techniques to overcome
embarrassment.
There
remains a huge stigma around erectile dysfunction and it takes an
average
of two years for a man who is worried about ED to discuss it
with
his doctor. One of the aims
of www.ErectionAdvice.co.uk is to
empower
men to actively seek help - many men are reluctant to discuss
erection
problems with their GPs and even some GPs continue to find ED
difficult
to discuss. Even six years
after the launch of oral treatment
for
ED, there is still a huge unmet medical need.
Experts estimate that
there
are as many as 4 million men in the
UK
who suffer from the ED 1;
of
which 2.3 million are 'bothered'2 but only just over half of them
have
approached their GP for treatment and advice3 - the rest suffer in
silence.
Men
are notoriously bad at seeking health advice and seeking solutions
for
embarrassing problems on the internet is not new; but getting
accurate
and responsible health information on the web can be a
challenge.
www.ErectionAdvice.co.uk has been developed by Pfizer,
leaders
in erectile dysfunction medicine, with the help of GP Mike Kirby
(Professor
of General Practice at
University
of
Hertfordshire
- a
leading
authority on ED); the Sexual Dysfunction Association and the
Men's
Health Forum to provide confidential, accurate and reliable
information
that men can trust. In
accordance with MHRA regulations,
the
site provides general information about ED and does not recommend
any
particular type of treatment or medicine.
Dr Kirby, who is well published on the subject and regularly treats ED
patients
at his Letchworth surgery says: "Men with erection problems
often
wait too long before talking to a health professional.
There may
be
important underlying medical and psychological problems that need to
be
addressed. I welcome the
launch of the erection advice website - it
gives
good advice and encourages men to seek help.
And the good news is
that
the majority of men with this problem can be helped and return to
normal
sexual function."
Men's Health Forum Director, Peter Baker has welcomed the new ED
website:
"This is a very impressive new resource for men suffering from
ED
- erection issues still carry a stigma; but the information on
Erection
Advice is frank and honest and written by experts, and should
help
dispel the myths and encourage men to seek help."
Through a link with www.ErectionAdvice.co.uk, the Sexual Dysfunction
Association
are offering men individual counselling and advice and have
welcomed
the new site. Director Ann Tailor says: "Many men are too
embarrassed
to talk about their erection problems, by offering this
interactive
service, men can get personalised and confidential advice
from
experts in the field."
The
site was developed with the help of men with erectile dysfunction
for
men with erectile dysfunction. As
part of a panel of 'real men'
with
ED who helped develop the site, Ben has test-driven the site: "I
wish
that there had been some thing like this around when I was first
battling
with these issues. I
recommend anyone concerned about ED or
who
needs practical help, to dive in - there is a wealth of information
and
help."
-o0o-
References
1.
Matson Jack Epi Data
2.
Sexual Habits Survey Milward Brown 2002
3.
Dinlink data Dec 2004
(17/6/05)
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