Older men like Playboy’s Hugh Hefner and actor Michael Douglas
have sung the praises of Viagra, but now scientists say the erectile
dysfunction pill is not only good for your sex life — it’s good for your
heart.
In the bedroom, Viagra
allows greater blood flow to the penis. But in the heart, the “little
blue pill” can prevent heart muscle thickening and early-stage heart
failure, according to research published today in the open access journal BMC Medicine.
"Large clinical trials
are now urgently needed to build on these encouraging findings,” said
lead author Dr. Andrea M. Isidori, associate professor of endocrinology
at Sapienza University of Rome.
Dosages used for heart
ailments are lower than those used for erectile dysfunction, and
patients in the study showed few side effects. “Surprisingly, in over
1600 treated subjects, no increased risk of visual disturbance,
photosensitivity and ‘blue haze,’ was observed,” he told NBC News.
The
active ingredient in Viagra is sildenafil citrate, which is a
phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor (PDE5i). The inhibitor blocks the
enzyme PDE5, which prevents relaxation of smooth muscle tissue.
Researchers analyzed
randomized trials that had
been published between January 2004 and May
2014, choosing 24 involving mixed populations of patients who were
treated with PDE5i or a placebo. PDE5i was given to men who had
cardiovascular disorders, but who did not necessarily suffer from sexual
impotence, according to Isidori.
The study found that the
inhibitor prevented the heart from changing shape in patients suffering
from left ventricular hypertrophy, a condition that causes thickening
and enlargement of the heart muscle. The drug also improved functioning
of the heart in patients with a variety of cardiac conditions, with no
effect on blood pressure.
In fact, researchers
found that the drug improved efficiency when the heart pumped blood into
vessels, along with relaxation between beats. “Very few drugs used in
cardiology can actually affect these parameters. For this reason their
implications in the treatment and prevention of heart failure are huge.”
However, Isidori notes
that because these studies were conducted exclusively on men, the next
step should be a larger trial on women.
"A significant number of subjects suffering from erectile dysfunction are much happier to take pills for heart failure or high blood pressure than to improve their erections."
“I am not surprised and it’s good news,” said Dr. Robert A. Kloner,
professor of medicine in the cardiovascular division at the Keck School
of Medicine at USC in California. “We can always use a new drug for
heart failure."
Kloner co-authored the
book, “Viagra: How the Miracle Drug Happened & What It Can Do for
You.” He said this is not the first time, scientists have looked to
Viagra for potential heart benefits.
In 1989, British
scientists tested sildenafil citrate as a medication to treat high blood
pressure and angina. By the 1990s in early trials of the drug,
researchers noticed an interesting side effect — an increase in
erections.
In 1996, the
pharmaceutical company Pfizer patented it as Viagra, and in just two
years, doctors had ordered more than 40,000 prescriptions of the new
wonder drug. “When the drug first came out there was a big scare — is
this going to kill people?” said Dr. Robb D. Kociol, director of the heart failure program at the CardioVascular Institute at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.
“But in all studies, to
the best of my knowledge, it’s not shown any increase in cardiac events
in patients who take these drugs,” he said.
Past studies have
suggested Viagra and other PDE5 inhibitors may have benefits for heart
failure by decreasing pulmonary artery resistance and providing
cardio-protective effects in settings with low blood flow, according to
Kociol.
“They also improve
exercise tolerance in patients with heart failure,” he said. The drug
may even reduce the size of a heart attack.
But Kociol said scientists have to “temper” their enthusiasm as more studies are necessary.
“As interesting as this
paper is, there have been conflicting results,” he said. “If there is a
silver bullet, it remains to be seen.”
Kociol added that
researchers also need to “pay more attention” differences between men
and women and between racial groups. Some earlier research suggests that
drugs like Viagra might interact differently with estrogen, which is
known to have naturally protective properties for the heart.
Still, using a sex drug for the heart may raise some eyebrows.
“There is a certain titillation factor when you talk about Viagra — people chuckle,” said Kociol.
And for that reason,
today doctors prescribe sildenafil citrate for pulmonary arterial
hypertension and Raynaud’s syndrome, but market the same drug by a
different name — Revatio.
But study author Isidori also notes that his new research may also help destigmatize the use of sex drugs like Viagra.
“A significant number of
subjects suffering from erectile dysfunction are much happier to take
pills for heart failure or high blood pressure than to improve their
erections,” he said. “This can cause depression and aggravates further
their health status and quality of life.”
Columbia University
psychologist Judy Kuriansky said there will be one other side effect of
Viagra for the heart: a “boost” in sales.
“This way, the man and
the woman don’t have to blame his impotence or get embarrassed about his
inability to perform,” she told NBC News. “Instead they have an excuse —
he has a physical problem.”
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