A drug for erectile dysfunction may also help treat heart failure, a preliminary study in animals suggests. In the study, published today in the journal Scientific Reports, the researchers gave the drug tadalafil to sheep that had advanced heart failure. The researchers found that the treatment improved the strength of the animals' heart contractions and that it reversed some of the harmful cellular effects seen in heart failure.
The finding adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that erectile dysfunction (ED) drugs could be beneficial for individuals with heart failure, a condition in which the heart muscle can't pump enough blood to meet the body's normal demands.
Heart failure is a serious condition, and existing treatments aren't always effective. About half of the people who develop heart failure die within five years of their diagnosis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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