Prediction of cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality with erectile dysfunction: a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies

Erectile dysfunction (ED) carries an independent risk for cardiovascular (CV) events. We conducted a meta-analysis of all longitudinal studies for determining the ability of ED to predict risk of clinical events and to dissect factors influencing this ability.

We conducted a comprehensive search of electronic databases through July 2012. Longitudinal studies that reported relative risk (RR) estimates with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were included. Of the 14 studies included (92 757 participants; mean follow-up, 6.1 years; 16 articles), 13 (14 articles) reported results on total CV events (91 831 individuals), 4 on CV mortality (34 761 individuals), 4 on myocardial infarction (35 523 individuals), 6 on cerebrovascular events (27 689 individuals), and 5 on all-cause mortality (17 869 individuals). The pooled RRs for the above-mentioned end points were 1.44 (95% CI, 1.27-1.63), 1.19 (95% CI, 0.97-1.46), 1.62 (95% CI, 1.34-1.96), 1.39 (95% CI, 1.23-1.57), and 1.25 (95% CI, 1.12-1.39), respectively, for men with versus without ED. The RR was higher in intermediate- compared with high- or low-CV-risk populations and with younger age. The RR for studies that diagnosed ED with the use of a questionnaire compared with a single question was higher (RR, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.38-1.86 versus RR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.18-1.37, respectively; P=0.006).

ED is associated with increased risk of CV events and all-cause mortality. RR is higher at younger ages, in intermediate-risk groups, and when a questionnaire is used instead of a single question.