Viagra Heart Attack Called Rare

Viagra, the popular impotence drug, rarely causes heart attacks, according to an analysis of 82 studies. The analysis, by doctors at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, concluded that the rate of heart attacks among Viagra users resembled that of middle-aged men and older men in similar physical condition.

Often, men with impotence, or erectile dysfunction, have heart trouble related to diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure, said Dr. Murray Mittleman. He focused on 4,497 men who took Viagra and 3,136 who took dummy pills.

The analysis found 21 heart attacks or deaths among Viagra users and 12 in the comparison group. But researchers said the Viagra users had been followed longer, and when taking that factor into account, the heart attack or death risk was virtually the same for the two groups. The results of the analysis, financed by Viagra-maker Pfizer Inc., were presented at a meeting of the American College of Cardiology.

In a separate analysis presented at the meeting, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles reviewed Viagra-linked reports to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration between April 1998 and May 1999.

A total of 522 deaths were reported among Viagra users -- including 200 heart attacks and 94 cardiac arrests. Heart patients who take nitroglycerin for chest pain are warned not to use Viagra because the combination can cause a dangerous drop in blood pressure. Researchers said no proof exists showing Viagra caused any of the deaths.

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