Benzodiazepines related sexual dysfunctions: A critical review on pharmacology and mechanism of action

Abstract Introduction Normal sexual functioning of both men and women, being a very complex process, is affected by numerous issues besides aging. Many factors affect the sexual function and lifestyle of the young population. In this article, we tried to review the literature to update the knowledge on benzodiazepine-related (BZD) sexual dysfunction (SD) and involved mechanisms of actions based on animal and human studies. Methods Different standard websites such as PubMed were used to review the literature and keywords including benzodiazepines, sexual dysfunction, gammaaminobutyric acid A (GABAA) receptor and erectile dysfunction were used. Results SD is one of the most common disorders in males and females which has recently been demonstrated to be associated with psychotropic medications such as antihypertensive agents, tranquilizers, antihistamines, appetite suppressants, antidepressants and anxiolytics. BZDs are among the most common psychotropic agents worldwide. SD including decreased libido, erectile dysfunction (ED) and other undesired sexual urges were observed in the patients receiving BZDs. Discussion The mechanisms of action of BZDs to induce SD mainly relate to enhanced GABAA receptor function which reduces penile erection.