Internal Pudendal Artery Angiographic Findings in Impotent Patients Undergoing Coronary Angiography in Emam Khomeini Hospital Ahvaz, Iran

Background and Objective: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a common medical disorder which is more prevalent in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). Several mutual risk factors exist between ED and CAD; therefore ED has been recognized as CAD risk equivalent. The purpose of this study was to assess internal pudendal artery angiographic findings in patients with CAD and ED. Subjects and Methods: Forty male candidate for coronary artery angiography who suffered from ED were included in this study. The participants' ED was evaluated by Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM), a five question version of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire. After coronary artery angiography, in the same session patients underwent selective pelvic artery angiography. Results: A relationship was seen between the severity of ED and the number of coronary arteries with atherosclerosis (P=0.028). Furthermore, a direct relationship was also seen between the probability of atherosclerosis in pelvic arteries and severity of ED (P=0.017). Atherosclerosis of pelvic arteries was more prevalent in patients with 2 and 3VD (P=0.03) and also in patients with diabetes (P=0.023). Conclusions: Although the prevalence of ED is high in patients with CAD, atherosclerosis of pelvic arteries is not common in these patients; and most lesions in their pelvic arteries were seen in internal pudendal arteries. Severe ED suggests severe coronary artery involvement and of all standard risk factors only diabetes had a direct relationship with atherosclerosis of pelvic arteries.