Combined cardiac sympathetic excitation and vagal impairment in patients with non-organic erectile dysfunction.
OBJECTIVE
Patients with non-organic erectile dysfunction (ED) frequently present with syndromes involving systemic sympathovagal dysfunction. The linkage of ED to cardiac autonomic regulation is not well understood.


METHODS
Forty-four men with non-organic ED and 38 healthy age-matched control subjects with ages ranging from 40 years to 69 years were recruited. These two groups were divided into three distinct age categories at 10-year intervals. Patients were divided into three different severity categories, among whom 35 patients received a two-month oral treatment of trazodone. Power spectral analysis of successive R-R intervals (RR) was performed to evaluate the variance (variance of RR-interval values), the high-frequency power (HF), and the ratio of low-frequency power to HF (LF/HF) of their heart rate variability (HRV).


RESULTS
Patients exhibited a significantly lower variance and HF, but a higher LF/HF compared to the control group across all age categories. The changes in variance and HF were severity dependent. In addition, all the HRV parameters of the patients with a satisfactory response after treatment have significantly improved.


CONCLUSIONS
The results indicate that patients with non-organic ED had significant cardiac sympathetic hyperactivity and severity-dependent cardiac vagal impairment.


CONCLUSIONS
Non-organic ED may be accompanied by an abnormality in cardiac autonomic regulation.
Chen
Chih J
CJ
Department of Urology, Hualien General Hospital, Department of Health, Executive Yuan, Taiwan.
Kuo
Terry B J
TB
Tseng
Yi-Jhan
YJ
Yang
Cheryl C H
CC
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000379:methods; D007172:Erectile Dysfunction / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013057:Spectrum Analysis; D014196:Trazodone / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D020421:Vagus Nerve Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D055815:Young Adult
D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors; D014196:Trazodone