Cardiovascular risk stratification and cardiovascular risk factors associated with erectile dysfunction: assessing cardiovascular risk in men with erectile dysfunction.
Cardiovascular risk factors are known to be associated with the presence of erectile dysfunction (ED), and ED is more common in men with cardiovascular disease (CVD). The Princeton Guidelines provide a strategy for assessing cardiac risk and planning a safe return to sexual activity. Men at low risk, who have fewer than three cardiac risk factors, can resume intercourse with very little concern for an untoward cardiac event. Men at high risk need to have their primary disease controlled, and should be stabilized before planning to resume sexual activity. Prior to resuming intercourse, men in the indeterminate category are candidates for restratification as either low or high risk. Certain cardiovascular risk factors may be predictors of ED: most notably, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and diabetes. Advancing age is also a strong predictor of ED. The close correlation between ED and CVD is a signal to evaluate the sexual histories of all men who present for cardiovascular evaluation and, perhaps, of all men in general. Early detection of ED may allow for early diagnosis and management of CVD and diabetes.
Barrett-Connor
Elizabeth
E
Division of Epidemiology, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0607, USA. ebarrettconnor@ucsd.edu
D000375:Aging; D000465:Algorithms; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000150:complications*; D048909:Diabetes Complications; D007172:Erectile Dysfunction / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D006949:Hyperlipidemias / Q000150:complications; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors