Statins May Help Viagra

A small study of 12 men with erectile dysfunction ( ED ) that didn’t respond to Viagra was done to see if adding a statin (Lipitor) could help. The men, whose average age was 58, had slightly raised LDL-cholesterol levels. Eight of them were given 80 mg of Lipitor daily and four received a placebo. After 6 weeks the ED score of the 8 treated men had increased, from moderate-to-severe dysfunction to only mild dysfunction. By 12 weeks the LDL-cholesterol levels of the Lipitor-treated men had fallen by 43%, while the placebo-treated group showed no change. This finding supports the role of atherosclerotic changes in the penile arteries as a cause for ED .

It’s no coincidence that both drugs used came from Pfizer – they provided financial support for the study; however, one would presumably see the same result with, say, Cialis (for ED) and Zocor (a statin).