Changes in peak systolic velocity induced by chronic therapy with phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor

The aim of this study was to assess the influence of chronic therapy with phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor on penile haemodynamics at colour Doppler ultrasound. Thirty patients affected by erectile dysfunction (ED) of different aetiology tested with the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) were evaluated with penile colour Doppler ultrasound during basic and dynamic phases (10 microg PGE1) before and after chronic self-administration of sildenafil citrate (dosage: 100 mg as required, two to three times a week) for a period of 5-20 months (mean: 12.3). Treatment was interrupted 14-21 days before the second ultrasound evaluation. Peak systolic velocity (PSV) and end-diastolic velocity (EDV) were recorded by means of colour Doppler; cut off values were 25 and 5 cm s(-1) respectively. Data were compared by nonparametric tests. Twenty-two of the 30 patients showed normal pre-treatment PSV, while eight of 30 had an insufficient arterial flow. Mean pre-treatment EDV was 4.7 +/- 0.5. After chronic therapy with sildenafil, a global improvement of 10.5% on PSV was seen (P < 0.001), without any statistical difference between patients with normal pre-treatment peak and those with a borderline one. No statistically significant changes were found for EDV (P = 0.98). It is concluded that chronic therapy with phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor results in a significant improvement in PSV values, probably due to a penile chronic vasoactive enhancement.