Aspirin could treat erectile dysfunction, accoring to a new study.
Just one 100mg pill a day for six weeks significantly reduced circulation issues in men, Turkish researchers found.
At the beginning of the study, 70 percent of the 184 men – who had an average age of 48 – could not achieve an erection.
By the end, they found their ‘erectile function score’ went up from 14.3 out of 30 (less than 50 percent) to 21.3 (more than 75 percent) , based on the universally accepted Index of Erectile Function scale.
Those statistics aren’t far off the success rate marketed by Viagra – between 48 percent and 81 percent.
The groundbreaking study is the first to assess how therapy to thin platelets in the blood could impact erectile dysfunction, despite previous studies linking arousal issues with high platelet volume.
Turkish researchers claim 120 men achieved a 75 percent erection success rate after six weeks of one daily aspirin. Viagra, meanwhile, markets a success rate between 48 and 81 percent
Lead author Dr Zeki Bayraktar, of Istanbul Medipol University, explained some men have a larger platelet volume than others.
Those larger platelets, he explains produce more thromboxane, which is known to be ‘the most potent’ blocking agent to circulation.
The study consisted of 120 men taking aspirin and 64 men taking a placebo.
During the six-week treatment plan, they were routinely asked two questions:
Were you able to insert your penis into partner’s vagina?
Did your erection last long enough for you to have successful intercourse?
According to the study, all of the participants started with similar answers.
Fifty percent of the placebo group said ‘yes’ to the first question, as did 51.3 percent of the aspirin group.
Meanwhile less than a third of each group (31.6 percent and 31.2 percent respectively) said ‘yes’ to the second question.
By the end of the study, their responses were starkly different.
After six weeks of taking a daily aspirin, 88.3 percent of men answered ‘yes’ to the first question, and 78.3 percent of them answered ‘yes’ to the second.
While the placebo group also experienced more erections during the study, it wasn’t statistically significant, the authors said (with 59.3 percent answering ‘yes’ to the first question and 43.5 percent answering ‘yes’ to the second at the end of the study).
Some urologists have warned men to take the research with a pinch of salt, since the study did not involve a large proportion of patients with conditions that carry the highest risk of erectile dysfunction, such as diabetes, hypertension, and coronary artery disease.
‘Although the study adds to the growing body of evidence linking endothelial dysfunction to ED, the results must be reproduced prior to drawing conclusions regarding aspirin therapy for prevention and treatment of ED,’ Darshan P. Patel, MD, of the Division of Urology at the University of Utah School of Medicine, told Renal and Urology News.