CONDOM ‘DEFLATION’ COMMON

A new survey reveals that ill fitting condoms often add to men’s erection woes in the bedroom. Researchers say that along with men’s lack of confidence in applying the condom the condoms themselves can lead to high levels of erection loss.

Published in the November edition of the journal Sexual Health, the study says that this “deflation” can lead to men avoiding the use of condoms, leading to risky sex, and increasing the chances of becoming infected with a sexuality transmitted infection.

“They just give up on condom use because they know they are not going to have reliable erections, and this puts them and their partners at risk,” says Cynthia Graham, Associate Research Fellow at Indiana University in the US – one of survey’s researcher.

Almost 300 men were surveyed by the researchers about their use of condoms. The study found that 37% of men had at least one erection loss either while applying condoms or during sex in the previous three months. Most pertinently, men who reported erection loss had more unprotected sex over the study period.

Almost half the men that experienced erection loss said that they removed condoms during sex. The researchers found that men who had three or more sexual partners over the study period, participants who had trouble applying condoms and men who experienced problems with condom comfort were all almost twice as likely to lose their erections.

Graham said that “We know that a lot of men aren’t aware that it is usual to lose your erection. So it’s not just education about proper condom use, it’s about men’s sexuality. No man is completely invincible, even younger men. It’s how they respond to erection loss that is important.”