Beneficial effects of switching from β-blockers to nebivolol on the erectile function of hypertensive patients

• 来源期刊: 亚洲男性学杂志（英文版）
• 年，卷（期）: 2006,（2）
• 页码范围: 177-182
• 页数: 6页
• 语种: 英文

摘要

Aim: To investigate the effect of substituting β-blockers with nebivolol on the erectile function of patients suffering from essential hypertension. Methods: Forty-four young and middle-aged men (31-65 years) with essential hypertension visited our outpatient clinic and took β-blocker treatment (atenolol, metoprolol or bisoprolol) for more than 6months. All the patients completed a questionnaire regarding erectile function (International Index for Erectile Function).Patients were then switched to an equipotent dose of nebivolol for 3 months and, at the end of this time period, filled out the same questionnaire. Results: Twenty-nine out of the 44 (65.9%) patients who took β-blockers (atenolol,metoprolol or bisoprolol) had exhibited erectile dysfunction (ED). Their systolic and diastolic blood pressure did not change significantly with the treatment switch. In 20 out of these 29 (69%) patients, a significant improvement in the erectile function score was exhibited after 3 months of nebivolol administration, and in 11 of these 20 patients, erectile function was normalized. Conclusion: Nebivolol seems to have a beneficial effect on ED (possibly due to increased nitric oxide availability); however, further prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled studies are needed to confirm the beneficial effects of nebivolol.