Sildenafil useful for antipsychotic-induced erectile dysfunction

Last Updated: 2006-03-27 12:05:17 -0400 (Reuters Health)

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Treatment with sildenafil safely improves erectile dysfunction (ED) brought on by antipsychotic use, according to a report in the American Journal of Psychiatry for March.

Treatment of antipsychotic-induced ED in patients with schizophrenia and related disorders is important because the problem often leads to poor medication compliance, the report indicates.

In the present placebo-controlled crossover study, Dr. Rajesh Gopalakrishnan, from the Christian Medical College in Vellore, India, and colleagues assessed the effects of sildenafil in 32 married men with antipsychotic-induced ED.

Sildenafil use was associated with significant improvements in the number of adequate erections, satisfaction with sexual intercourse, and the duration of erections. Further analysis showed that sildenafil use more than tripled the odds of achieving adequate erections and satisfactory sexual intercourse.

Treatment with sildenafil was well tolerated, was not associated with any serious side effects, and did not lead to any study discontinuations, the report indicates. Nasal stuffiness and headaches were the most common side effects.

"These findings are similar to those reported from earlier studies with sildenafil in erectile dysfunction of mixed etiology as well as organic causation, such as diabetes and spinal cord injury," the authors note.

Am J Psychiatry 2006;163:494-499.