Impotence and High Blood Pressure
By admin at 13 February, 2009, 1:38 am
The key to treating erectile dysfunction (ED) starts with lowering the blood pressure. Without doing this critical step, there is no further help that can cause healthy natural erections. Some people are able to lower their blood pressure through lifestyle changes alone, while others often need help by means of medication used to lower one’s blood pressure.
However, a problem for many men is the fact that medications used in the treatment of high blood pressure have been linked to causing erectile dysfunction. This resulting problem often makes it difficult for some patients to continue taking a medication because of this unfortunate side effect. Often times, one may stop taking a medication due to the fact that their high blood pressure never caused any problems in the past. It is estimated that 70% of men who experience erectile dysfunction as a side effect from medications used to treat high blood pressure decide to stop due to this side effect.
Many drugs used in the treatment of high blood pressure have been linked to erectile dysfunction. But, some are much less likely than others to cause problems. In fact, certain high blood pressure drugs may even improve erectile dysfunction in some men.
It’s known that diuretics (or water pills, like hydrochlorothiazide) and beta-blockers (like Atenolol) can also cause erection problems. This often proves difficult for many doctors, seeing as these drugs are often the first ones prescribed in the case that a patient is unable to lower their blood pressure through diet and exercise.
Should you be taking a diuretic, the treatment must continue until your high blood pressure is under control. If, after taking this medicine, some form of erectile dysfunction is occurring, or your blood pressure continues to increase, your doctor will probably change your medication to help limit the side effect of erectile dysfunction. Or, your doctor could provide you with a combination of medicines allowing you to treat your high blood pressure and the side effect of erectile dysfunction simultaneously.
If you take a beta blocker you may also want to ask your doctor if it could cause erectile dysfunction. You might be better off taking a medication which has been proven to have a less likely chance that erectile dysfunction will be a side effect.
High Blood Pressure Drugs Not Associated with Causing ED
Some classes of drugs used to treat high blood pressure rarely contribute to problems of ED. They include:
• ACE inhibitors
• Alpha-blockers
• Calcium channel blockers
• ARBs
ACE (angiotensin converting enzyme) inhibitors — such as Lotensin, Capoten, Zestril, Prinivil, etc. — widen blood vessels and increase blood flow. Erectile dysfunction is rarely a side effect, and occurs in less than 1% of patients. Though there are several different medications in this class of drugs, research has shown that this seems to be true of all of them.
Other medications, known as calcium channel blockers, such as Diltiazem, Verapamil, or Amlodipine have been shown to rarely cause erectile dysfunction. However, some drugs in the group may be less common in attributing to ED than others. Please consult a doctor to find out which might be best for you.
In general, studies have proven that alpha-blockers do not often cause erection problems. In one study, a small number of men actually had a 100% improvement in their erectile dysfunction after two years on the alpha-blocker Cardura.
Drugs known as ARBs (angiotensin II receptor blockers, like Losarten) are not only unlikely to cause erection problems, but, ironically, might actually improve sexual function in men with high blood pressure.
A 2001 study published in the American Journal of the Medical Sciences looked at the drug Cozaar, which falls under the class of an ARB. In the beginning, just 7% of men and women in the study said they felt overall sexually satisfied. After 12 weeks of Cozaar, about 58% said they felt sexually satisfied. The percentage of men who reported having erectile dysfunction dropped from 75% to 12%.
Another study compared the drug Diovan, an ARB, with Coreg, a beta-blocker. This study, as seen in The American Journal of Hypertension in 2001, compared the effects of both of these drugs with high blood pressure and the frequency that the patients had sex. In the end, both drugs controlled blood pressure reasonably well. However, those who took the ARB were shown to have sex more often during the 16 week study. On average, the patients had sex about 8 times in the month before taking the medication, and 10 times during the month after. Patients taking beta-blockers experienced diminished results, averaging sex just 4 times a month, whereas compared with the 8 times a month in the period before taking the medication..
If Your Medicine Causes Erectile Dysfunction
If you think your medication could some how be connected to having erectile dysfunction, contact your doctor immediately.
Should your medicine be the cause, and it is NOT just your high blood pressure, changing to another medication could very well solve the problem. Please do not stop taking medication without the approval of your doctor. Doing so could cause you more harm than good.
Please consider that high blood pressure in itself could still be to blame for your erectile dysfunction. In that case, ask about trying drugs used to help erectile dysfunction such as Viagra, Cialis, or Levitra.
These drugs should not be taken unless your high blood pressure is already under control. These drugs are not safe for men who have high blood pressure. They have also been shown to not be safe for men taking alpha-blockers, or taking nitrate drugs used in the treatment of heart disease.
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