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Those who take erectile dysfunction drugs such as Viagra and Cialis may experience an additional health benefit beyond help with sexual performance.
A large observational investigation published January 13 in the Journal of Sexual Medicine (Viagra) revealed that men who regularly took a specific type of erectile dysfunction (ED) medication had a 25 percent lower chance of dying prematurely than men with ED who did not take these pills.
Use of Erectile Dysfunction Drugs Correlates With Multiple Heart Benefits
Researchers analyzed the health records of more than 70,000 men with erectile dysfunction and found that those who were prescribed Viagra (sildenafil), Cialis (tadalafil), Levitra (vardenafil), or similar drugs called phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) inhibitors also had:
- 39 percent lower death rate due to heart disease
- 22 percent lower death rate due to unstable angina (where the heart doesn’t get enough blood flow and oxygen)
- 17 percent lower rate of heart failure
- 15 percent lower rate in the need for revascularization procedures such as angioplasty (a procedure to open up blocked arteries), stenting, and bypass surgery
- 13 percent lower rate of major adverse cardiovascular events such as stroke and heart attack
“Across all of these endpoints, those men with ED who were exposed to the PDE-5 inhibitors showed significant associations with lower rates of many of these adverse events or trends in the right direction, suggesting a possible protective effect,” says the lead researcher, Robert Kloner, MD, PhD, the director of the Cardiovascular Research Institute at Huntington Medical Research Institutes in Pasadena, California, and a professor of medicine in the cardiovascular division at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.
While the research demonstrates a link between PDE-5 inhibitors and cardiac benefit, the authors stress that the results do not prove these drugs cause an improvement in heart health. Large-scale clinical trials would be needed to establish such a cause-and-effect relationship.
New Study Is More Sweeping Than Earlier Research
Past research has suggested that PDE-5 inhibitors may bolster heart health. Some previous studies, according to Dr. Kloner, examined subsets of patients, such as those with diabetes and prior heart attacks.
The new study was distinct in that it looked at a very large data set from a general population of men with ED in the United States. The analysis also took into account most cardiovascular crises, including death from cardiovascular causes (unstable angina, heart failure, stroke, heart attack, need for coronary revascularization) as well as death due to any cause.
Unlike earlier studies, the current research found that subjects on the highest doses of ED medication had significantly lower rates of cardiovascular crises than those on the lowest doses.
The average age of men in the study was 52, and each had been diagnosed with erectile dysfunction between 2006 and 2020.
ED Drugs May Improve the Ability of Blood Vessels to Dilate, Taking a Load off the Heart
Kloner says that PDE-5 inhibitors have been shown to improve the ability of the blood vessels to dilate and improve the function of the inner lining of blood vessels.
“The small fall in blood pressure associated with these drugs may have protective effects over time and take some of the workload off the heart and reduce the tendency to develop atherosclerosis,” says Kloner, referring to a buildup of plaque in the arteries. “There are some studies suggesting that [the drugs] may have anti-platelet effects, which could help prevent blood clots.”
He adds that some research suggests these medications may also protect the heart cells from low coronary flow or reduce inflammation.
Because PDE-5 inhibitors are commonly used to treat pulmonary hypertension in both men and women, Kloner would like to see future research evaluating these drugs in women and in men without ED.
