March 2010 Archives

These stories pop up periodically. Some government agency somewhere wants to stop covering Viagra under their medical plan. It's always some effort to pander to... I don't know who. The underlying notion is that sex isn't part of life and erectile dysfunction isn't a health issue. Since we don't live in Puritan times, no one believes this, so these policies never actually get enacted:

Outgoing Gov. Tim Kaine proposed in December to make state workers pay out of pocket for Viagra and its pharmaceutical cousins. But the legislature nixed that proposal during the subsequent months of budget wrangling.

I understand politicians who think they can get political gain by railing against sex among teenagers. But I just don't get the logic in trying to limit sex among married couples, most of the people who would be affected by this proposal. Makes no sense, medically, ethically, or politically.

Very interesting new study about the correlation between erectile dysfunction and death among those with heart disease:

Men with cardiovascular disease, also known as heart disease, and ED were twice as likely to die from all causes than men who did not have erectile dysfunction. And those with ED were 1.6 times more likely to suffer from a serious cardiovascular problem such as a heart attack or stroke.

This is an excellent reminder that drugs like Viagra treat the symptom, erectile dysfunction, but they don't treat the underlying cause. Often, people know the cause. Diabetes, another medication, anxiety, or just old age may be causing the ED. However, it's important if you are suffering from ED to tell your primary care physician so he or she can do the necessary tests and rule out something more serious underlying it.