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 A SURVEY of Singapore men showed that as many as one in three suffers from premature ejaculation.
And they are concerned for their partners. Most of the men diagnosed with premature ejaculation (92 per cent) worry that their condition leaves their partners sexually unfulfilled.
The questionnaire survey was carried out on 243 men, aged 18 to 55, in February and March. Premature ejaculation is a lack of control on the man’s part during sex. It results in him having an ejaculation before or within a minute of sexual penetration, said Professor Ganesan Adaikan, a clinical sexologist with the department of obstetrics and gynaecology at the National University Hospital.
Common problem
At a media briefing of the survey findings on Wednesday, Prof Adaikan touched on the prevalence of
and attitude towards premature ejaculation while Prof Lim highlighted the impact of premature ejaculation.
Prof Adaikan said premature ejaculation is believed to be the most common male sexual health problem in
Singapore.
It is twice as prevalent as erectile dysfunction in men aged between 18 and 59. According to the survey, 20 per cent of Singapore men suffer from premature ejaculation while another 14 per cent probably suffer from it. In all, almost 35 per cent of the men who responded to the survey felt that they had little ejaculatory control. This resulted in high levels of distress, dissatisfaction and frustration in their relationships.
This is consistent with results of another study done last year on men in the Asia-Pacific region. In the earlier study, about 30 per cent of 5,000 men from 10 countries surveyed suffered from it and it was found to be prevalent across all age groups. Both studies were commissioned by pharmaceutical company Janssen-Cilag. The cause can be genetic, passed down from generation to generation, or psychological, said Prof Adaikan.
Both professors declined to give a straightforward answer on what is considered the normal amount of time
that men take to ejaculate. Prof Adaikan said anything beyond two minutes can be considered “normal”. But there are no studies to verify this. He then reluctantly trotted out a number, which had been brought up before in the US, where an informal survey found the norm to be eight minutes.
“But there are no studies to verify this,” he said. Treatment includes behavioural therapy, counselling and the use of creams. Currently, there are no drugs approved for the treatment of premature ejaculation here. But a drug treatment may be available soon. A drug, dapoxetine, is currently undergoing the registration process here. It is already available in places such as Australia, New Zealand and many countries in Europe.
Do you suffer from premature ejaculation? Take this quiz
Definition: Ejaculation here refers to release of semen after penetration
1. How easy is it for you to delay ejaculation?
Not at all difficult
Somewhat difficult
Moderately difficult
Very difficult
Extremely difficult
2. Do you ejaculate before you want to?
Almost never or never
Less than half the time
About half the time
More than half the time
Almost always or always
3. Do you ejaculate with very little stimulation?
Almost never or never
Less than half the time
About half the time
More than half the time
Almost always or always
4. Do you feel frustrated because of ejaculating before you want to?
Not at all
Slightly
Moderately
Very
Extremely
5. How concerned are you that your time to ejaculation leaves your partner sexually unfulfilled?
Not at all
Slightly
Moderately
Very
Extremely
If your answers are mostly moderately difficult to extremely difficult or more than half the time, chances are you need to see a doctor to get help. If your answers are mostly not at all and less than half the time, chances
are you’re all right.
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