NEW YORK (Reuters Health) -
A long-acting drug for erectile
dysfunction is safe and effective for men with spinal cord
injuries who have difficulty achieving erections, a new study
shows.

A total of 186 men were randomly assigned to receive
treatment with Cialis or placebo for 12 weeks. The study was
completed by 129 in the treatment group and by 34 in the
placebo group. The subjects, who were an average of 38 years
old, had d erectile dysfunction for six months or
longer. They were instructed to take the drug when they planned
to have sex.

Nearly 85 percent of men given Cialis (know as
tadalafil) said the drug improved their erections compared
with19.5 percent of men given placebo. Another 78.5 percent
said it improved their ability to engage in sexual activity
versus just 14.6 percent of those on placebo. , the
men on the active drug reported significantly more successful
penetration and intercourse attempts. The most common side
effects were headache and urinary tract infection.

“On-demand treatment with tadalafil…may help improve the
sex lives of patients with erectile dysfunction and spinal cord
injury and their partners,” Dr. Francois Giuliano of Raymond
Poincare Hospital, Garches, France and conclude in
the study, published in the Archives of Neurology.

Just one in four men with a spinal cord injury can achieve
erections adequate for intercourse on their own, the
researchers point out. Cialis, which like Levitra and Viagra
belongs to the class of drugs known as oral phosphodiesterase 5
inhibitors that are the first-line treatment for erectile
dysfunction, has shown promise in treating the condition in men
with spinal cord injury.

Tadalafil is effective for a longer period of time than
Viagra and Levitra, and unlike the drugs, it
does not interact with fatty foods, Giuliano and colleagues
note.

This may offer men with spinal cord injury and their
partners a “more natural sexual experience,” they add. “Hence,
tadalafil may be the agent of choice for spinal cord injury
patients who do not want to plan their sexual activity around
medication dosing,” the researchers conclude.

SOURCE: Archives of Neurology, November 2007.