Study: Men who use erectile dysfunction drugs 25% less likely to die early

A study says men who use phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE-5is) are 25 percent less likely to die early.

Phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors are a group of drugs used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction.

The study was executed by researchers from the University of Southern California (USC) and published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine.

They gathered data from 70,000 adult men with an average age of 52, from 2006 to 2020. All the men had an erectile dysfunction diagnosis at some point in their life.

The researchers determined, through medical records, that among the population, 23,816 used erectile dysfunction drugs, while 48,682 others did not.

They also determined any subsequent heart problems they may have suffered during the follow-up period.

It was found that those who used the medications were 13 percent less likely to suffer major adverse cardiovascular (CV) issues.

Users of the drugs were also found to be 17 percent less likely to suffer heart failure and 15 percent less likely to require coronary revascularisation — a procedure used to clear blockages in the heart’s arteries.

There was also a 22 percent decreased likelihood of developing unstable angina, a condition when plaque in the coronary artery denies oxygen and blood to the heart.

“Men with erectile dysfunction who were exposed to PDE-5is had a statistically significant lower risk of dying from any cause (overall mortality) by 25% compared to unexposed men, in addition to a 39% reduced risk of dying from cardiovascular causes, compared to men who were not exposed to PDE-5is during the same time period,” the researchers wrote.

“Risk reduction correlated with PDE-5is exposure level.”

They said the clinical implications of the results are that PDE-5is may have cardioprotective effects.

They, however, noted that the study was limited by the absence of an independent measure of sexual activity in the men, so it is not clear whether increased sexual activity may have contributed to the results.