Cardiovascular risk factors in men with ischemic heart disease and erectile dysfunction

Low androgen status inhibits erectile function by inducing eNOS uncoupling in rat corpus cavernosum

BACKGROUND

The number of erectile dysfunction (ED) patients is increasing annually. How to improve the effectiveness of ED treatment is an important issue for the field of andrology.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate whether low androgen status impairs the erectile function of rats by regulated endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) uncoupling.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Thirty-six 8-week-old male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into six groups as follows: 4-week sham-operated group (4w-sham), 4-week castration group (4w-cast), 4-week castration + testosterone (T) group (4w-cast + T), 8-week sham-operated group (8w-sham), 8-week castration group (8w-cast), and 8-week castration + T group (8w-cast + T). Three mg/kg of T was subcutaneously injected every other day in castration + T groups. The ratio of the maximum intracavernous pressure/the mean arterial pressure (ICPmax/MAP), the level of serum T, dihydrobiopterin(BH₂ ), tetrahydrobiopterin (BH₄ ), nitric oxygen(NO), 3-nitrotyrosine(3NT), dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), guanosine triphosphate cyclohydrolase 1 (GTPCH1), nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase 2 (NOX2), and eNOS monomers/dimers in the corpus cavernosum were detected.

RESULTS

The ratio of ICPmax/MAP and BH₄ /BH₂ , the level of serum T, NO, and GTPCH1 decreased significantly in castration groups compared with sham-operated groups and castration + T groups (P < .05) and decreased significantly in 8w-cast group compared with 4w-cast group (P < .05). The expression of 3NT and NOX2 and the ratio of eNOS monomers/dimers increased significantly in castration groups compared with sham-operated groups and castration + T groups (P < .01) and increased significantly in 8w-cast group compared with 4w-cast group (P < .01). The expression of DHFR in 4w-cast group was significantly higher than that in 4w-sham group and 4w-cast + T group (P < .01) and in 8w-cast group was significantly lower than that in 8w-sham group and 8w-cast + T group (P < .01).

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

Low androgen status induces eNOS uncoupling by reducing BH₄ /BH₂ and increasing 3NT. Due to the decreased NO production, the erectile function of the rats was impaired.

Hypertension might be a risk factor for erectile dysfunction: a meta-analysis

The study aimed to evaluate whether hypertension was a risk factor for erectile dysfunction (ED). Databases including PubMed and Embase were retrieved to identify studies related to hypertension in ED patients. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used as the effect size. Subgroup analyses stratified by total number of enrolled subjects and research regions were performed. Sensitivity analysis was performed by removing a single study at one time. Egger's test was used to evaluate the publication bias. Totally, 40 studies including 121,641 subjects were included in the meta-analysis. As a result, hypertension was closely related to ED (OR = 1.74, 95% CI, 0.63-0.80, p < .01). Subgroup analysis indicated hypertension was the risk factor for ED whatever the participants numbers. When stratified by different regions, hypertension was a risk factor for ED in Africa (OR = 3.35, 95% CI, 1.45-7.77, p < .01), Americas (OR = 1.97, 95% CI, 1.68-2.31, p < 0.01), Asia (OR = 1.46, 95% CI, 1.16-1.84, p < .01) and Europe (OR = 1.83, 95% CI, 1.34-2.49, p < .01), but not in Australia. Hypertension may be a potential risk factor for ED.

Association of erectile dysfunction with depression in patients with chronic viral hepatitis

AIM: To investigate the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and its association with depression in patients with chronic viral hepatitis.

METHODS: This single center cross-sectional study was conducted from August 2013 through January 2014. All outpatients with chronic viral hepatitis in our liver clinic between 18 and 80 years of age were considered eligible for this study. The exclusion criteria included well-established causes of ED, such as diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, alcohol abuse, liver cirrhosis, ischemic heart disease, renal disease, neurologic disease, and malignancy. We also excluded the patients who had incompletely answered the questionnaires. ED was assessed using the validated Korean version of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) scale. The Korean version of the self-administered Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scale was used to assess depression in the patients. Demographic and medical data were obtained from the patients’ medical records. Current or past history of psychiatric diagnosis and drug history including the use of an antiviral agent and an antidepressant were also recorded.

RESULTS: A total of 727 patients met the initial eligibility criteria. Six hundred seventeen patients were excluded because their medical records contained one or more of the previously determined exclusion criteria. The remaining 110 patients were assessed based on the BDI and IIEF-5 questionnaires. Based on the IIEF-5 scale, the prevalence of ED among patients with chronic viral hepatitis was 40%. Compared with the non-ED group, patients in the ED group were older. The proportion of patients in the ED group who had a job or who were naïve peg-interferon users was lower than that in patients in the non-ED group. Patients with ED had significantly lower scores on the IIEF-5 scale than patients without ED (11.75 ± 4.88 vs 21.33 ± 1.86, P = 0.000). Patients with ED rated significantly higher scores on the BDI scale compared with patients without ED (12.59 ± 7.08 vs 5.30 ± 4.00, P = 0.000). Also, the IIEF-5 scores were negatively correlated with age, employment, and BDI scores. In the multiple logistic regression analysis, age and depression were independently associated with erectile dysfunction (P = 0.019 and 0.000, respectively).

CONCLUSION: Patients with chronic viral hepatitis have a high prevalence of ED. Age and depression are independent factors for ED in male patients with chronic viral hepatitis.

A synthetic erectile optogenetic stimulator enabling blue-light-inducible penile erection

Precise spatiotemporal control of physiological processes by optogenetic devices inspired by synthetic biology may provide novel treatment opportunities for gene- and cell-based therapies. An erectile optogenetic stimulator (EROS), a synthetic designer guanylate cyclase producing a blue-light-inducible surge of the second messenger cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) in mammalian cells, enabled blue-light-dependent penile erection associated with occasional ejaculation after illumination of EROS-transfected corpus cavernosum in male rats. Photostimulated short-circuiting of complex psychological, neural, vascular, and endocrine factors to stimulate penile erection in the absence of sexual arousal may foster novel advances in the treatment of erectile dysfunction.

Erectile dysfunction in qatar: prevalence and risk factors in 1,052 participants-a pilot study

AIM

The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) in Qatar and to determine the risk factors associated with it.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This is a cross-sectional survey study of men attending the outpatient department at Hamad Medical Corporation in Qatar between February 2012 and February 2013. The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF)-5 questionnaire was used for data collection. In addition to the IIEF-5 score, each participant's medical history was taken, with special emphasis on risk factors for ED, including diabetes mellitus (DM), hypertension (HTN), dyslipidemia, coronary artery disease (CAD), and smoking habits, and on their body mass index.

RESULTS

One thousand fifty-two participants were randomly selected to fill out the IIEF-5 questionnaire. The participants' mean age (±SD) was 41.87 ± 13.24 years. Analysis of replies to the IIEF-5 showed that ED was present in 573 out of 1,052 participants (54.5%). Fifty-six (5%) participants had severe ED, 61 (6%) had moderate ED, 173 (16%) had mild to moderate ED, and 283 (27%) had mild ED. Risk factors for ED that held statistical significance were age (odds ratio [OR] = 2.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.1-4.1, P < 0.001), DM (OR = 2.6, 95% CI 1.7-3.9, P < 0.001), HTN (OR = 1.6, 95% CI 1.1-2.5, P = 0.012), dyslipidemia (OR = 1.5, 95% CI 1.1-2.4, P = 0.024), and CAD (OR = 3.2, 95% CI 1.3-7.5, P = 0.009).

CONCLUSION

We found that the prevalence rate of ED in Qatar is quite similar to the regional reported rates. Overall, we demonstrated that nearly more than half of our participants suffered from ED. Besides age, DM, HTN, CAD, and dyslipidemia were found to be the most important risk factors for ED. Al Naimi A, Majzoub AA, Talib RA, Canguven O, and Al Ansari A. Erectile dysfunction in Qatar: Prevalence and risk factors in 1,052 participants-A pilot study. Sex Med 2014;2:91-95.

Erectile dysfunction, metabolic syndrome and arterial disease. Clinical-pathological relation by carotid ultrasonography

INTRODUCTION

Different studies have shown the relationship between erectile dysfunction, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease. The objective of this study was to evaluate the presence of arteriopathy performing carotid ultrasound in patients with and without erectile dysfunction.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We conducted a case-control study with 44 patients consulting for erectile dysfunction and 20 controls. All subjects completed the IIEF-5 test and we studied the criteria for metabolic syndrome, and a carotid ultrasound to study the intima-media thickness and the presence of atherosclerotic plaques was performed.

RESULTS

Mean intima-media thickness was .71mm±.21 for the right and of .71±.17 for the left carotid in patients with erectile dysfunction. In the control group, the means were .54±0.11 and 0.59±0.15mm respectively, statistically significant differences (P=.02 and P=.05 respectively). No plaque was found in any control, but in 25% of both carotid arteries of patients with erectile dysfunction (P=.01). As metabolic syndrome, according to the American Heart Association, were diagnosed 52.8% of patients with erectile dysfunction, and 16.7% of controls, and according to the International Diabetes Federation, 52.3% of patients with erectile dysfunction and 25% of controls met diagnostic criteria. In both cases there were significant differences (P<.01 and P=.02 respectively). We found a positive linear correlation between waist circumference and the intima-media thickness in both carotid (P<.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with erectile dysfunction may be at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, as determined by the presence of arterial disease in the carotid arteries, which indicates that we should made a more thorough and comprehensive study of patients with erectile dysfunction.

Why is there a need for an interdisciplinary approach to assess erectile dysfunction?

Erectile dysfunction is a prevalent complaint among men. The majority of patients suffering erectile dysfunction exhibit various risk factors of vascular diseases. Erectile dysfunction used to be recognised as one of the consequences of vascular diseases in patients suffering heart attack or myocardial infarction. During the last decade, however, the role of endothelial dysfunction in the occurrence of erectile dysfunction has been signified, and it has been suggested that erectile dysfunction may not be simply a consequence of vascular diseases but an indicator of future vascular problems. Erectile dysfunction has been known as “the tip of iceberg” of a generalised vascular dysfunction, which typically happens before serious vascular problems. Considerable evidence shows a link between erectile dysfunction and vascular disorders. Several theories have been considered for the association between erectile dysfunction and vascular diseases. One of them is the “artery size” theory focusing on the differences between the diameter of the penile artery and other arteries. Another theory is based on “endothelial dysfunction”, which highlights inappropriate vasoconstriction as a cause of erectile dysfunction and vascular diseases. “Age” has also been reported to have pivotal role in the development of vascular dysfunction resulting in erectile dysfunction and ultimately vascular diseases. Another theory explaining the pathophysiology of erectile dysfunction and its relationship with vascular diseases focuses on the formation of atherosclerosis plaques. This article endeavours to review the current literature and discuss why a multidisciplinary approach is needed while assessing erectile dysfunction.