Men Should Think Twice Before Taking These Two Medications Together – Health Digest

In the study, researchers looked at patient data from 2006 to 2013 of Swedish men diagnosed with stable coronary artery disease. Out of 61,487 men who had been treated with nitrates, 5,710 of these patients were taking nitrates along with PDE5I medications. Over the course of a nearly six-year average follow-up period, the results showed that taking nitrates and PDE5Is increased the risk of patient death, including cardiovascular death and noncardiovascular mortality. The greatest number of deaths were seen in relation to circulatory diseases.

The researchers explained that one of the risks associated with the combined use of nitrates and PDE5Is is hypotension, as both drugs cause decreases in patient blood pressure. Researchers from a 2001 article published in the Journal of Family & Community Medicine outline how hypotension can result in death if a patient’s blood pressure gets too low too fast. For this reason, the researchers advised against giving ED drugs like Viagra to patients taking nitrates, particularly if a person has just taken a PDE5I. This doesn’t mean that men diagnosed with coronary artery disease are left to deal with erectile dysfunction on their own, however. Some research alternatively suggests that while hypotension is a potential risk associated with the simultaneous use of nitrates and PDE5Is, the timing of the drugs may make a difference (per HealthDay).