Seminars in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia

 

Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

Register here to gain access to SAGE's 500+ Journals Online

Click here to sign up for SAGE Journal Email Alerts today!

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Request Reprints
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Kiowski, W.
Right arrow Articles by Schalcher, C.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Kiowski, W.
Right arrow Articles by Schalcher, C.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?
Seminars in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia, Vol. 10, No. 3, 256-258 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/1089253206291149

Sex, the Heart, and Heart Failure

Wolfgang Kiowski, MD

Hanspeter Brunner, MD

Christoph Schalcher, MD

Heart and Vascular Center Zürich, Klinik im Park, Zürich (WK, CS), and Department of Cardiology, University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland (HP)

In the modern era of pharmacologic treatment of erectile dysfunction, men with heart disease increasingly approach their physicians regarding the possibility of restoring sexual activity. At the same time, patients are also frequently aware of public figures that have reportedly died during coitus, often in the arms of their mistresses or prostitutes. Added to this is the perception of patients, and oftentimes their physicians, that coitus and orgasm are associated with a near maximal or even "supermaximal" cardiac workload and therefore may be hazardous for a diseased heart. Accordingly, knowledge of the cardiovascular effects of sexual activity, the risks of triggering a cardiovascular event, and the potential risks inherent in the use of drug therapy of male impotence is important to properly advise patients and their spouses regarding this sensitive issue.

Key Words: chronic heart failure • PDE-5 inhibitors • sex


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?