Premature ejaculation in men, is an instance when a man comes to a sexual climax earlier than anticipated, most of the time or all the time during sexual activity. This varies in all men but health professionals generally recognise it as when a man ejaculates less than 2 minutes after arousal. It can occur in all forms of sexual activity and can cause disruption and anxiety to the individual it affects. Premature Ejaculation vs Erectile Dysfunction (ED)  Premature Ejaculation and Erectile Dysfunction are not the same even if they are often associated with each other. Premature Ejaculation is ejaculating too soon after stimulation but erectile dysfunction is the inability to attain and maintain an erection. They can both cause performance anxiety and also are often confused because they shorten or stop sexual activity for the individual.  Symptoms  Guidelines for specific symptoms are changing quite often and as such there isn’t a clear definition or list of symptoms for premature ejaculation. This is because there is quite a high element of personal opinion on how long a man should last and no two men will have the same opinion.  Guidelines based on studies outline the main symptom to diagnose against is:  -Ejaculation occurring within 120 seconds (2 minutes) of sexual arousal. This is not for an isolated one-off cases, rather a regular occurrence. If this is happening most or all of the time then it’s fairly evident that the man is suffering with premature ejaculation.  It can often be embarrassing to the person suffering but if it doesn’t occur often then it often means that there is no long-term sexual issue. If all other signs are positive i.e. body confidence, comfort with your sexual partner or more regularity and ejaculation still occurs within 2 minutes, it shows there may be an underlining issue. Causes These can be split into “physical” and “psychological” and “lifestyle”   - Physical: - Diabetes - Vascular conditions (e.g. angina and high blood pressure) - Back injuries - Prostate issues - Multiple sclerosis - Nerve conditions or damage   Psychological: - Stress - Anxiety - Nervousness - Low self esteem - Guilt and Unresolved emotional issues - Lack of sexual experience   Lifestyle:  - Smoking - Excessive alcohol consumption - Illicit or prescription drug use   TREATMENT Prior to any drug intervention it’s important to understand what could be causing it. It will also point you in the right direction for treatment. For example, if your premature ejaculation is due to over sensitisation, then a numbing cream such as Emla will help. Other creams and ointments may be suitable. Tackling any underlying psychological issues often have a positive effect. Physical causes will need to be treated to help with premature ejaculation. Often this can be difficult (such as back injuries etc) and can cause psychological trauma further down the line. Priligy (Dapoxetine) is an effective medication in treating premature Ejaculation. It belongs to a group of medicines known as SSRI’s (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) which help with performance anxiety and actively encourages a delay in ejaculation during sexual activity. Stay healthy with SimplyMeds range of sexual health products and vitamins & supplements.  P.S 2019