Researchers in Canada have found that taking erectile dysfunction (ED) medications could translate into a higher risk for three vision-damaging conditions, though the increased risk was 85 per cent, the absolute risk was still low.
The findings were published online April 7 in ‘JAMA Ophthalmology’. While a relatively small percentage of men will develop these conditions because so many men take these medications — 20 million prescriptions are dispensed each month in the United States — that means there are many cases, the researchers noted.
The vision-damaging conditions are serious retinal detachment (SRD), retinal vascular occlusion (RVO) and ischemic optic neuropathy (ION).
Symptoms of SRD include light flashes and the sudden appearance of floaters or spots in the field of vision — users of erectile dysfunction medications had a more than 2.5 times greater risk of this condition.
RVO symptoms include the sudden loss or blurring of vision, as well as “floaters” — ED medication users were roughly 1.4 times more likely to have this condition.
ION includes loss of mostly central vision — those who used ED medications were two times more likely to have this, the study found.