Effect of daily tadalafil on reported outcomes in patients with erectile dysfunction and depressive symptoms: STROBE, a case-control study.

Erectile dysfunction (ED) and depression are closely related. We sought to determine ED and depression were improved by tadalafil, a phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor, at 5 mg daily, in this case-control study. Participants were men aged 20 to 65 years with ED for >3 months, International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF) score <21 points, and Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) survey result >50 points who were willing to participate.On first visit (V1) and after 1 (V2) and 2 months (V3), clinical features were examined using IIEF-5 for diagnosing and evaluating ED, SDS for evaluating depression, and International Prostate Symptom Score and Quality of Life (IPSS/QoL) survey for examining lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Tadalafil 5 mg was administered daily for 2 months.A total of 60 participants were an average age of 58.68 ± 6.71 years. Patient overall average IIEF was 8.76 ± 5.98, showing mild ED symptoms, and total average IPSS 13.74 ± 7.55 showed moderate LUTS. Average overall SDS index was 58.93 ± 9.21, indicating moderate-to-severe findings. Average change in IIEF among all patients revealed significant improvement from V1 to V2 (-2.69 ± 1.22, P = .03) and V1 to V3 (-4.38 ± 1.20, P < 0.01). IPSS also significantly improved from V1 to V3 (3.48 ± 1.37, P = .01), as did SDS index (V1, V2: 4.69 ± 1.89, P = 0.02), (V1, V3: 5.43 ± 1.89, P < .01). Patients with severe IIEF scores (group 1, n = 27) experienced significantly greater improvement in IIEF from V1 to V2 and V1 and V3, compared to those with mild-to-moderate IIEF scores. Both groups improved in SDS index from V1 to V2 and V1 to V3, with the greatest improvement between V1 and V3 for group 1 and V1 and V2 for group 2.Daily tadalafil 5 mg could be helpful for ED patients with depressive symptoms and improved LUTS and quality of life.

Medicine. 2020 Jun 05 [Epub]

Kyu Shik Kim, Tae Yoong Jeong, Hong Sang Moon

Department of Urology, Myongji Hospital, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Goyang., Department of Urology, Hanyang University Hospital, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.