Premature Ejaculation Patient Information Leaflet
What is premature ejaculation?
- Premature ejaculation is when you orgasm (or ‘come’) too soon. Sometimes it’s soon after (or even before) inserting your penis inside your partner
- It is common but underreported
- It usually means that you ejaculate within 3 minutes of entering your partner, with a feeling that you are unable to delay your orgasm
- Sex may end up being frustrating or distressing to the point that you may avoid it
- The issue may affect your relationship and your life
- Some people suffer from emotional health issues as a result – it’s wise to seek for this if it’s getting to you
What are the treatments available for premature ejaculation?
- There is a new medication, a “selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor” (SSRI) which has been developed specifically for the treatment of premature ejaculation
- It’s not suitable for everyone
- You take it 1 to 3 hours before sex
- Approximately ⅓ of patients respond well
- The more severe your symptoms (i.e. time to ejaculation less than 3 minutes), the more likely you are to respond well
- Some patients find that their time to ejaculation is tripled by this treatment
Other options
- Medicines used for erection problems (erectile dysfunction) may sometimes also be useful for premature ejaculation
- If you don’t want to take tablets, creams and sprays are available which help to reduce the sensitivity of the penis
- Other SSRIs may be used
- However, you need to take these every day and the effect takes at least 2 weeks to occur
- You may find the effectiveness of treatment starts to wear off after 6-12 months of regular use
