Efficacy Assessment of Kaempferia parviflora for the Management of Erectile Dysfunction

Abstract

Age-related decline in erectile function is a noted phenomenon worldwide. A variety of medicinal plants have been identified as having strong aphrodisiac properties along with the ability to improve erectile functioning. Kaempferia Parviflora (KP) has famous as a Thai Viagra and use it to increase male impotency. However, there is limited scientific evidence regarding the efficacy of this herb on this issue in aging healthy men. This study therefore investigated the effect of KP extract administration on erectile response of male elderly volunteers. Total 45 male healthy elderly volunteers will be divided into 3 separated groups including placebo and the different doses of ethanolic extracts of KP (25 and 90 mg) once daily at a period of 2 months. The erectile function tests including the response latency time to visual erotic stimuli, size and length of penis both in flaccid and erection states were assessed after single administration, 1 and 2 months of treatment. In order to investigate the possible underlying mechanism, we also determined the alteration of testosterone, FSH and LH concentrations. KP at a dose of 90 mg day^-1 treated group exhibited a significant enhanced all parameters after 1 and 2 months of treatment. Moreover, the penile length at erection states and the response latency to sexual erotic stimuli appeared to be the parameters that showed significant changes during the delay period. Unfortunately, our study failed to show the significant changes on hormones concentration. Our study clearly demonstrates that KP is a potential resource for the development of nutraceutical compound against aged related male erectile dysfunction.