Background: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a multifactorial disease related to age, vascular disease, psychological disorders, or medical treatments. Beta‐blockade agents are the recommended treatment for hypertensive patients with some specific organ damage but have been outlined as one of leading causes of drug‐related ED, although differences between beta‐blockade agents have not been assessed. Methods: Cross‐sectional and observational study of hypertensive male subjects treated with any beta‐blockade agent for at least 6 months. ED dysfunction was assessed by the International Index of Erectile Dysfunction (IIEF). Results: 1.007 patients, mean age 57.9 (10.59) years, were included. The prevalence of any category of ED was 71.0% (38.1% mild ED; 16.8% moderate ED; 16.1% severe ED). Patients with ED had longer time since the diagnosis of hypertension and higher prevalence of risk factors and comorbidities. The prevalence of ED increased linearly with age. ED patients received more medications and were more frequently treated with carvedilol and less frequently with nebivolol. Patients treated with nebivolol obtained higher scores in every parameter of the IIEF questionnaire. The multivariate analysis identified independent associations between ED and coronary heart disease (OR: 1.57), depression (OR: 2.25), diabetes (OR: 2.27), atrial fibrillation (OR: 2.59), and dyhidopiridines calcium channel blockers (OR: 1.76); treatment with nebivolol was associated to lower prevalence of ED (OR: 0.27). Conclusion: ED is highly prevalent in hypertensive patients treated with beta‐blockade agents. The presence of ED is associated with more extended organ damage and not to cardiovascular treatments, except for the lower prevalence in nebivolol‐treated patients.
The baseline data from GLORIA-AF phase 2 demonstrate that in newly diagnosed nonvalvular atrial fibrillation patients, NOAC have been highly adopted into practice, becoming more frequently prescribed than VKA in Europe and North America. Worldwide, however, a large proportion of patients remain undertreated, particularly in Asia and North America. (Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation [GLORIA-AF]; NCT01468701).
Background
Intravenous ferric carboxymaltose (
FCM
) improves symptoms, functional capacity, and quality of life in heart failure and iron deficiency. The mechanisms underlying these effects are not fully understood. The aim of this study was to examine changes in myocardial iron content after
FCM
administration in patients with heart failure and iron deficiency using cardiac magnetic resonance.
Methods and Results
Fifty‐three stable heart failure and iron deficiency patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive intravenous
FCM
or placebo in a multicenter, double‐blind study. T2* and T1 mapping cardiac magnetic resonance sequences, noninvasive surrogates of intramyocardial iron, were evaluated before and 7 and 30 days after randomization using linear mixed regression analysis. Results are presented as least‐square means with 95% CI. The primary end point was the change in T2* and T1 mapping at 7 and 30 days. Median age was 73 (65–78) years, with N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide, ferritin, and transferrin saturation medians of 1690 pg/mL (1010–2828), 63 ng/mL (22–114), and 15.7% (11.0–19.2), respectively. Baseline T2* and T1 mapping values did not significantly differ across treatment arms. On day 7, both T2* and T1 mapping (ms) were significantly lower in the
FCM
arm (36.6 [34.6–38.7] versus 40 [38–42.1],
P
=0.025; 1061 [1051–1072] versus 1085 [1074–1095],
P
=0.001, respectively). A similar reduction was found at 30 days for T2* (36.3 [34.1–38.5] versus 41.1 [38.9–43.4],
P
=0.003), but not for T1 mapping (1075 [1065–1085] versus 1079 [1069–1089],
P
=0.577).
Conclusions
In patients with heart failure and iron deficiency,
FCM
administration was associated with changes in the T2* and T1 mapping cardiac magnetic resonance sequences, indicative of myocardial iron repletion.
Clinical Trial Registration
URL
:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier:
NCT
03398681.
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