Question:
Treatment of Erectile Dysfunction in Men With Depressive Symptoms 3/9/02
Answer:
Treatment of Erectile Dysfunction in Men With Depressive Symptoms:
Results of a Placebo-Controlled Trial With Sildenafil Citrate
Seidman SN, Roose SP, Menza MA, Shabsigh R, Rosen RC
The American Journal of Psychiatry. 2001;158(10):1623-1630
There appears to be a correlation between erectile dysfunction and
depression that is bidirectional -- ie, depression can cause impaired
sexual functioning or erectile dysfunction and its psychosocial
implications can cause a secondary depression. The authors examined 152
males who were seen at urology clinics for erectile dysfunction who also
screened positive for mild to moderate depressive symptomatology. They
were blindly randomized to receive either sildenafil citrate (at a
starting dose of 50 mg and titrated either higher or lower accordingly)
or placebo. Of those individuals who had an improvement in sexual
functioning, 76% also showed a 50% decrease in their Hamilton Depression
Scale scores from baseline. Only 14% of nonresponders to sildenafil
citrate showed a similar improvement on the depression rating scale. In
addition, the response rate to sildenafil citrate for improvement of
sexual dysfunction in this group was approximately 90% compared with
those receiving placebo (12%). The authors believe that sildenafil
citrate can be an effective agent in treating erectile dysfunction in
males with mild to moderate depression. In their study, physical
improvement was associated with improvement in the symptoms of
depression.
