Retrograde ejaculation (RE) is common and can be caused by a number of aetiologies including pelvic surgery such as transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) or anterior resection, medical therapies such as alphas blockers, neurologic diseases including autonomic dysfunction from diabetes mellitus and spinal cord injuries. It affects approximately 1% of the male population but prevalence increases steeply in affected patient groups, rising to 70% of patients that undergo a TURP.

Search Strategy Concept 1: Retrograde Ejaculation ("retrograde ejaculation" OR "ejaculation abnormalities" OR "semen reflux" OR "bladder neck dysfunction" OR "post-ejaculatory urine" OR "urinary semen") Concept 2: Patient Perspectives ("patient perspective*" OR "patient experience*" OR "patient view*" OR "patient preference*" OR "patient-reported" OR "quality of life" OR "psychosocial impact" OR "mental health impact" OR "patient satisfaction" OR "perception*" OR "belief*" OR "attitude*" OR "opinion*") Inclusions Any patient perspective data on RE No date restriction No article type restriction No language restriction - unless translation not available Exclusion Date that does not specifically include RE Databases PubMed Medline Embase Scopus Web of Science CINAHL (nursing and allied health) PsycINFO (psychological and psychosocial perspectives) Grey Literature ClinicalTrials.gov Google Scholar

Total n=4250 No direct patient perspective data exists regarding retrograde ejaculation.

RE raises a clear issue with male fertility but far less clear potential issue is impact on sexual function or satisfaction due to RE. There are multiple schools of thought regarding RE and sexual function, multiple sources report that RE alone will cause a dry ejaculate but not affect orgasm . The other side of the coin is an emerging school of thought that RE should be avoided or due to the negative impact on sexual function of the patient directly or their intimate partners. Despite this, there is little evidence available on sexual dysfunction due to RE indicating the need for further high quality research on the impact of RE on patients.