Generally, men with mild to moderate vasculogenic ED who have had some response to PDE5 inhibitors are ideal candidates for acoustic wave therapy. Other men, such as those with nerve damage due to pelvic cancer surgery and those with ED resulting from psychological causes, typically don’t respond to the treatment.

Although acoustic wave therapy has a long track record in medicine, its use for treating ED in the United States is relatively new. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration hasn’t approved it specifically for ED, and guidelines from the American Urological Association note that acoustic wave therapy shouldn’t be offered outside of a clinical trial — a position with which our team disagrees.

Furthermore, for ED, insurance coverage of acoustic wave therapy is lacking. In some practices, the treatments can cost thousands of dollars.

For the right patient who’s counseled the right way, it’s a low- to zero-risk treatment that may have surprisingly good effects. If it doesn’t break the bank for you to have this therapy, it’s certainly worth considering.