MIAMI – Erectile dysfunction drugs may increase the risk of an early death when combined with a common drug for chest pain.
A study published in the Journal of American Cardiology included over 60,000 men with stable coronary artery disease and a history of heart attack or revascularization, a non-surgical procedure that treats blockages.
It found that men taking erectile dysfunction medications along with nitrates, a common drug for chest pain, saw an increase in their risk for heart failure and early death.
Patients who want to use ED medications are advised to talk to their doctors about other treatment options and about how to take them along with nitrates.
PENILE IMPLANT PROCEDURES ON THE RISE
Dr. Jason Wolf, a urologist with HCA Florida Kendall Hospital said a growing number of men who suffer from ED are seeking penile implants, a procedure he said was actually developed in South Florida decades ago.
“There has been an improvement over that time to avoid complications and make it more accessible to some of the patient population, so I think that my be driving some of the uptick in patients asking for these types of implants to help with their erectile dysfunction,” Wolf said.
He said pain from the procedure, which takes about 30 minutes to perform, typically subsides within a week.