|
To treat erectile dysfunction (ED), you have to lower your blood pressure
first. Some people are able to do that through lifestyle changes alone. Others
need help from prescribed blood pressure medication.
A problem for many men, however, is that some types of blood pressure
medicines can actually cause erectile dysfunction. That may make it
difficult to stay on your medication, especially if your high blood pressure
never caused any symptoms before. An estimated 70% of men who have side effects
from blood pressure medicine stop taking it.
Many drugs used to treat high blood pressure have been linked to erectile
dysfunction. But some are much less likely than others to cause problems.
Certain of the blood pressures drugs may even improve erectile
dysfunction for some men.
It’s known that diuretics (or water pills, like hydrochlorothiazide) and
generic viagra online
(like Atenolol) can cause erection problems. These are also the
first drugs that a doctor is likely to prescribe if you are not able to lower
your blood pressure through diet and exercise.
If you’re taking a diuretic, you should stay on your medicine until your
blood pressure is under control. If your erection problem persists, or your
blood pressure goes back up, then your doctor might switch you to a drug that’s
less likely to cause erectile dysfunction. Or, a combination of potenzmittel tadalafil
might work better to control your blood pressure and reduce the risk of
erectile dysfunction.
If you take a beta blocker you may also want to ask your doctor if it might
cause erectile dysfunction. You might be better off on a medication less likely
to cause a problem.
Erection-Friendly High Blood Pressure Drugs
Some families of high blood pressure drugs rarely cause erectile dysfunction
as a side effect:
- ACE inhibitors
- Alpha-blockers
- Calcium channel blockers
- ARBs
ACE (erectile pill converting enzyme) inhibitors — such as Lotensin, Capoten,
Zestril, Prinivil, etc. — widen blood vessels and increase blood flow.
Erectile dysfunction is rarely a side effect, occurring in less than 1% of
patients. There are several different medications in the category. This seems
to be true of all of them.
There are also medications known as calcium channel blockers, such as
Diltiazem, Verapamil, or Amlodipine. As a group, they rarely cause erectile
dysfunction. But erection problems may be less common with some individual
drugs within that group than with others. Your doctor can tell you which.
In general, alpha-blockers do not often cause erection problems either. In
one study published in the journal Hypertension in 1997, a small
number of men actually had a 100% blog order viagra
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 they may 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, an ARB. At first, just 7% of men and
women in the study said they felt sexually satisfied overall. After 12 weeks of
Cozaar, about 58% said they were 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 cialis vs viagra
.
The study, published in the American Journal of Hypertension in 2001,
compared the effect of the two drugs on blood pressure and frequency of sexual
intercourse.
The drugs controlled blood pressure equally well. But people who took the
ARB reported having sex more often during the 16 weeks of treatment. They said
they had sex about eight times a month before, and 10 times a month after.
People taking the beta-blocker had sex much less often: eight times a month
before, and four times a month after.
Steps to Take If Your Medicine Causes Erection Problems
Tell your doctor if you think your blood pressure medicine may be causing
problems with your erections.
If it is your medication, and not just your high blood pressure,
switching to another prescription may solve the problem. Never stop taking your
medicine without your doctor’s OK.
But high blood pressure itself still could be to blame for your erectile
dysfunction. In that case, ask about trying an erectile dysfunction drug like
Viagra, Cialis, or Levitra.
You should only take these drugs once your blood pressure is under control.
They are not safe for men with untreated high blood pressure. They are also not
safe for men taking alpha-blockers, or men taking nitrate drugs for heart
disease.
| 