Erectile dysfunction and the baculum

Abstract

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is clinically defined as the inability to consistently acquire or maintain an erection of sufficient firmness for sexual intercourse. ED has several implicated causes with major predictors consisting of obesity, cardiovascular disease, medication use and psychological disease. Not just a condition of aging, ED has been shown to present in 38% of infertility patients. Humans rely completely on increased blood flow to the penis to maintain an erection, while most primates receive additional assistance from the baculum or os penis. The baculum is a bone located dorsally of the corpus spongiosum and varies in overall size, length and shape among the major groups of mammals possessing it.