Drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction might reduce Alzheimer's risk: Study

The drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction may also be associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimers disease according to a studyThe study published in the journal Neurology does not prove that erectile dysfunction drugs reduce the risk of Alzheimers disease It only shows an associationErectile dysfunction drugs which work by dilating blood vessels to allow more blood to flow through were first developed to treat high blood pressureAlthough were making progress with the new treatments for Alzheimers disease that work to clear amyloid plaques in the brain for people with early stages of the disease we desperately need treatments that can prevent or delay the development of Alzheimerrsquos disease said Ruth Brauer from the University College London in the UKThese results are encouraging and warrant further researchThe study involved 269725 male participants with an average age of 59 who were newly diagnosed with erectile dysfunctionParticipants did not have any memory or thinking problems at the start of the study They were then followed for an average of five years The study compared the 55 per cent of the participants who had prescriptions for erectile dysfunction drugs to the 45 per cent who did not have prescriptionsDuring the study 1119 people developed Alzheimerrsquos diseaseAmong the participants taking erectile dysfunction drugs 749 developed Alzheimerrsquos disease which corresponds to a rate of 81 cases per 10000 personyearsPersonyears represent both the number of people in the study and the amount of time each person spends in the study Among those who did not take the drugs 370 developed Alzheimers disease which corresponds to a rate of 97 cases per 10000 personyearsOnce researchers adjusted for other factors that could affect the rate of Alzheimers disease such as age smoking status and alcohol consumption they found that people who took erectile dysfunction drugs were 18 per cent less likely to develop Alzheimerrsquos than people who did not take the drugsThe association was strongest in those who were issued the most prescriptions over the study periodMore research is needed to confirm these findings learn more about the potential benefits and mechanisms of these drugs and look into the optimal dosage Brauer saidA randomised controlled trial with both male and female participants is warranted to determine whether these findings would apply to women as well Brauer saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever