Reading Article
Type PDE-5 Inhibitors and NAION
FDA has received 43 reports of varying degrees of vision loss, including blindness, in men taking type 5 phosphodiesterase (PDE-5) inhibitors. Most of these cases of vision loss were due to nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION). The loss of vision in some cases has been irreversible.
As type 5 phosphodiesterase (PDE-5) inhibitors are the main active ingredients in Viagra, Cialis and Levitra, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a news release to advise healthcare providers of the potential risk.
NAION is a vascular event that is presumed to occur due to a decrease in blood flow to the small arteries that supply the optic nerve. A disruption in the blood supply to the optic nerve causes damage to the nerve. Injury to the nerve may result in permanent visual loss in 1 or both eyes. Patients are typically older than 50 years of age; clinical examination reveals unilateral visual acuity and visual field loss and optic disk edema. Despite the frequency with which this condition occurs, its exact cause is not known. Numerous risk factors have been proposed, including a small cup-to-disk ratio, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, arteriosclerosis, hypercholesterolemia, and after intraocular surgery.
As patients with erectile dysfunctions are more likely to have the microvascular risk factors typically associated with spontaneous NAION, an ischemic effect by type 5 phosphodiesterase (PDE-5) inhibitors,on the optic nerve is plausible, but unlikely. In normal adults, PDE-5 inhibitors increased pulsatile ocular blood flow, a result of filling the choroidal circulation.
Despite the differences in the number of cases of NAION among men taking the various PDE-5 inhibitors – 38 cases in men using Viagra, 4 in men using Cialis, and 1 case in a man using Levitra – there is no evidence that one drug presents a higher risk than another. Viagra has been used by more than 23 million men worldwide, Cialis by more than 4.5 million, and Levitra by more than 1.8 million. The difference in the number of NAION cases among all 3 PDE-5 inhibitors reflects the number of each drug used worldwide rather than real differences in risk among drugs.
It can be recommended that patients with a history of monocular NAION be cautioned that PDE-5 inhibitors may increase the risk of NAION in the fellow eye. At the same time, patients who have risk factors for the development of NAION should be referred to an ophthalmologist before being prescribed PDE-5 inhibitors.
Valerian D is a freelance writer specialized in health issues affecting men like NAION blindness causes.
Popularity: 41% [?]

There Are 60 Comments To This Article
Cool sites……
[...]we came across a cool site that you might enjoy. Take a look if you want[...]………
Websites we think you should visit…
[...]although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we feel they are actually worth a go through, so have a look[...]……
WOW! check this out!……
Amazing Post, worth a read……
Online Article……
[...]The info mentioned in the article is some of the best available [...]………
Awesome website……
[...]the time to read or visit the content or sites we have linked to below the[...]………
Recent Blogroll Additions……
[...]usually posts some very interesting stuff like this. If you’re new to this site[...]……
Websites we think you should visit…
[...]although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we feel they are actually worth a go through, so have a look[...]……
Check this out…
[...] that is the end of this article. Here you’ll find some sites that we think you’ll appreciate, just click the links over[...]……
Check this out…
[...] that is the end of this article. Here you’ll find some sites that we think you’ll appreciate, just click the links over[...]……
Sources…
[...]check below, are some totally unrelated websites to ours, however, they are most trustworthy sources that we use[...]……
Recent Blogroll Additions……
[...]usually posts some very interesting stuff like this. If you’re new to this site[...]……
Recent Blogroll Additions……
[...]usually posts some very interesting stuff like this. If you’re new to this site[...]……
Websites we think you should visit…
[...]although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we feel they are actually worth a go through, so have a look[...]……
Websites worth visiting…
[...]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they are worth visiting[...]……
Links…
[...]Sites of interest we have a link to[...]……
Read was interesting, stay in touch……
[...]please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web[...]……
Online Article……
[...]The information mentioned in the article are some of the best available [...]……
Sites we Like……
[...] Every once in a while we choose blogs that we read. Listed below are the latest sites that we choose [...]……
Websites worth visiting…
[...]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they are worth visiting[...]……
Recommeneded websites…
[...]Here are some of the sites we recommend for our visitors[...]……
Awesome website…
[...]the time to read or visit the content or sites we have linked to below the[...]……
Check this out…
[...] that is the end of this article. Here you’ll find some sites that we think you’ll appreciate, just click the links over[...]……
Awesome website…
[...]the time to read or visit the content or sites we have linked to below the[...]……
You should check this out…
[...] Wonderful story, reckoned we could combine a few unrelated data, nevertheless really worth taking a look, whoa did one learn about Mid East has got more problerms as well [...]……
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
Websites we think you should visit…
[...]although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we feel they are actually worth a go through, so have a look[...]……
Websites we think you should visit…
[...]although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we feel they are actually worth a go through, so have a look[...]……
Check this out…
[...] that is the end of this article. Here you’ll find some sites that we think you’ll appreciate, just click the links over[...]……
Superb website…
[...]always a big fan of linking to bloggers that I love but don’t get a lot of link love from[...]……
Cool sites…
[...]we came across a cool site that you might enjoy. Take a look if you want[...]……
Sources…
[...]check below, are some totally unrelated websites to ours, however, they are most trustworthy sources that we use[...]……
Awesome website…
[...]the time to read or visit the content or sites we have linked to below the[...]……
Gems form the internet…
[...]very few websites that happen to be detailed below, from our point of view are undoubtedly well worth checking out[...]……
Interesting……
I saw this really great post today….
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
Read was interesting, stay in touch……
[...]please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web[...]……
Websites worth visiting…
[...]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they are worth visiting[...]……
Sources…
[...]check below, are some totally unrelated websites to ours, however, they are most trustworthy sources that we use[...]……
Blogs ou should be reading…
[...]Here is a Great Blog You Might Find Interesting that we Encourage You[...]……
Cool sites…
[...]we came across a cool site that you might enjoy. Take a look if you want[...]……
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
Websites we think you should visit…
[...]although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we feel they are actually worth a go through, so have a look[...]……
Websites you should visit…
[...]below you’ll find the link to some sites that we think you should visit[...]……
Cool sites…
[...]we came across a cool site that you might enjoy. Take a look if you want[...]……
Websites you should visit…
[...]below you’ll find the link to some sites that we think you should visit[...]……
Superb website…
[...]always a big fan of linking to bloggers that I love but don’t get a lot of link love from[...]……
Recent Blogroll Additions……
[...]usually posts some very interesting stuff like this. If you’re new to this site[...]……
Related……
[...]just beneath, are numerous totally not related sites to ours, however, they are surely worth going over[...]……
Recommeneded websites…
[...]Here are some of the sites we recommend for our visitors[...]……
Visitor recommendations…
[...]one of our visitors recently recommended the following website[...]……
Recent Blogroll Additions……
[...]usually posts some very interesting stuff like this. If you’re new to this site[...]……
Superb website…
[...]always a big fan of linking to bloggers that I love but don’t get a lot of link love from[...]……
Online Article……
[...]The information mentioned in the article are some of the best available [...]……
Read was interesting, stay in touch……
[...]please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web[...]……


You should check this out……
[...] Wonderful story, reckoned we could combine a few unrelated data, nevertheless really worth taking a look, whoa did one learn about Mid East has got more problerms as well [...]………