Viagra protects mountain climbers' lungs from pulmonary hypertension

Main Category: Hypertension
Article Date: 04 Aug 2004 - 14:00 PDT


Viagra protects mountain climbers' lungs from problems associated with high altitude, such as pulmonary hypertension, researchers say. Pulmonary hypertension can be triggered by a lack of oxygen.

According to research carried out at the University of Geissen, Germany, Viagra protects the lungs of mountain climbers from pulmonary hypertension.

You can read about this study in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.

The scientists say this discovery could give Viagra another indication - not just for mountain climbers, but patients who develop pulmonary hypertension (without climbing mountains).

If you have pulmonary hypertension your heart has to work a lot harder as the blood vessels around your lungs constrict. You can suffer heart damage, heart attacks and even death. We still do not know why most patients develop pulmonary hypertension.

The researchers got a group of 14 healthy male volunteer mountain climbers to see whether Viagra would offer them any benefits with regards to pulmonary hypertension.

Half the group were given Viagra while the other half got a placebo (dummy drug).

The group was tested at sea level and then again when they were at the Mount Everest Base Camp.

It seems that the Viagra reduced their blood pressure as well as enhancing the transport of oxygen to their lungs - both at sea level and high altitude.

This is the first time any drug has been shown to enhance exercise capacity at both sea level and high altitude.

The researchers said the penis and the lungs both share a biochemical similarity. Both the penis and the lungs have lots of phospodiesterase, this is an enzyme which constricts blood vessels in the lungs. Viagra (sildenafil) stops the enzyme from working, the result being better erections and blood supply to the walls of the lungs.

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