Thursday, July 22, 2010

Understanding Erections and Erectile Dysfunction

When a man is aroused, nerve signals are sent from the brain and around the penis. These nerve signals cause chemicals to be released that relax the muscles in the penis. Normally, these muscles are constricted so that blood cannot flow into the penis. When these muscles relax, large amounts of blood are able to enter the penis, causing an erection. An erection is reversed when another chemical (known as phosphodiesterase type 5 [PDE5]) breaks down the chemicals that caused the muscles to relax in the first place. This causes the muscles in the penis to constrict again as blood leaves the penis.

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