Yes, there is sex after a heart attack. Most men who have recovered from such an attack and been cleared by their doctors for sexual activity can safely take Viagra to overcome erectile dysfunction symptoms.
There are probably few reminders of one’s mortality as powerful as a heart attack. Such a brush with death is a sobering experience.
And men who’ve been through a heart attack, known to medical professionals as a myocardial infarction, are understandably cautious about what they can and cannot do in the wake of such a life-changing event.
As they regain their strength from the heart attack, men begin to wonder if it’s safe for them to have sex again. And, if so, whether they can safely take Viagra or one of the other oral drugs prescribed to treat erectile dysfunction.
Generally speaking, you can take Viagra to temporarily overcome your symptoms of impotence if your doctor has cleared you to resume sexual activity.
According to an article published in the February 2018 edition of Harvard Men’s Health Watch, sexual activity falls into the category of moderate aerobic activity and is on a par with brisk walking.
Don’t Mix Viagra and Nitrates
There are a few exceptions, of course. Do not use Viagra if you are using nitrate-based drugs to treat angina pectoris or high blood pressure that hasn’t responded to other antihypertensive medications. Nitrates and Viagra, as well as other ED drugs of its type, work by lowering blood pressure. Taking the two of them together could cause a potentially life-threatening drop in blood pressure.
However, assuming that you’re not taking nitrates in one form or another, you should be able to use Viagra with no problems. Actually, according to a Swedish research study first presented in 2017, the use of PDE5 inhibitors, the family of drugs to which Viagra belongs, may actually help heart attack victims to avoid further cardiac complications.
What Study Found
The study was conducted by researchers at Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet, according to a report at PharmacyTimes.com. In March 2017, its findings were presented by lead author Peter Andersson, M.D., at the 66th Scientific Session of the American College of Cardiology in Washington, D.C. Among other things, Andersson echoed the general guidelines about the use of ED drugs after a heart attack, saying, “If you have an active sex life after a heart attack, it is probably safe to use PDE5 inhibitors.”
But Andersson’s big news came in the form of the study’s findings that men taking PDE5 inhibitors after a heart attack have a lower risk of dying from or being hospitalized for heart failure than men who aren’t taking the drugs.
Risk of Death Cut 33%, Study Says
Swedish researchers evaluated data from 43,000 men who had suffered a first heart attack. The health outcomes of these men were tracked for an average of 3.3 years after their first attack. They found that men who had been prescribed an ED drug had a 33 percent lower chance of dying from any cause than men who were not taking one of these PDE5 inhibitors. In the United States, these drugs are sold under the brand names Viagra, Levitra, Cialis, Staxyn, and Stendra.
Also available are generic equivalents to Viagra and Cialis, which are marketed as sildenafil citrate and tadalafil, respectively.
The Swedish research team also looked at the health outcomes of post-heart attack patients who used alprostadil to treat their erectile dysfunction. That drug can be injected into the penis or introduced in suppository form through the urethral opening. No survival benefit was discerned among alprostadil users.
Get Your Doctor’s Okay First
While the outlook for post-heart attack sex lives is generally bright, the final authority on your personal sexual activity and use of ED drugs should be your cardiologist or primary doctor.
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