A study suggests that impotency drugs such as Viagra and Cialis may be linked with an increased risk of optic nerve damage in men with a history of heart attack or high blood pressure.
NAION
The findings are based on examinations of about 80 men. Half the men had optic nerve damage, in the form of non-arteritic anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy (NAION). NAION is the most common cause of optic nerve disease in those over 50 years old.
Ten Times More Likely
Questions about the patients' lifestyles revealed that those who'd had a heart attack were 10 times more likely to have optic nerve damage if they had taken Viagra or Cialis.
The drugs may reduce the blood flow to the anterior optic nerve. Those with cardiovascular diseases are more susceptible to such problems.
Coincidence?
Viagra manufacturer Pfizer argued that a greater number of NAION cases would have been reported if the association was more than coincidental. Eli Lilly, which manufactures Cialis, however, admitted that there had been a small number of cases of NAION among those taking the drug.
http://www.mercola.com/2006/feb/4/harming_your_eyesight_with_viagra.htm
NAION
The findings are based on examinations of about 80 men. Half the men had optic nerve damage, in the form of non-arteritic anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy (NAION). NAION is the most common cause of optic nerve disease in those over 50 years old.
Ten Times More Likely
Questions about the patients' lifestyles revealed that those who'd had a heart attack were 10 times more likely to have optic nerve damage if they had taken Viagra or Cialis.
The drugs may reduce the blood flow to the anterior optic nerve. Those with cardiovascular diseases are more susceptible to such problems.
Coincidence?
Viagra manufacturer Pfizer argued that a greater number of NAION cases would have been reported if the association was more than coincidental. Eli Lilly, which manufactures Cialis, however, admitted that there had been a small number of cases of NAION among those taking the drug.
http://www.mercola.com/2006/feb/4/harming_your_eyesight_with_viagra.htm