Statins and Erectile Dysfunction

Sexual activity is an important part of quality of life of men and erectile dysfunction affects other dimensions of the individual including depression, sexual performance, and self worth. At age 40, approximately 40% of men are affected by erectile dysfunction. The rate increases to nearly 70% in men aged 70 years [1]. This problem has become magnified because of the current aging of the population after the control of communicable diseases. In addition to age, erectile dysfunction is associated with cardiovascular disease since the two conditions share similar risk factors, such as diabetes, metabolic syndrome, sedentary lifestyle, smoking, injuries, or surgery to the pelvic area or spinal cord, obesity, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and depression [2]. Thus, the treatment of erectile dysfunction depends on the underlying etiology. Attention and amelioration to the extent possible of the conditions mentioned above is the first therapeutic approach. In the large majority of older persons with erectile dysfunction, phosphodiesterase isoenzyme 5 inhibitors are indicated and have been proven to be effective, well-tolerated and may have additional benefits in idiopathic pulmonary hypertension, heart failure, and coronary heart disease. A common instrument for the evaluation of sexual function in men is the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF), a validated self-administered questionnaire that has been psychometrically sound and linguistically validated in ten languages. This instrument ranks on a scale of one to five, five dimensions of sexual function (erection, orgasm, desire, intercourse satisfaction, and overall satisfaction) [3]