Whether Adding Vitamin D to Tadalafil 5 mg Treatment Is Useful in Patients with Erectile Dysfunction and Vitamin D Deficiency?

Abstract

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Numerous factors such as endothelial disease and hormonal disorder cause the development of erectile dysfunction (ED). However, the relationship between vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and ED is unclear. Moreover, the benefit of vitamin D replacement on ED patients with VDD is uncertain. As far as we know, there is no study yet in the literature regarding the addition of vitamin D to phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors in the treatment of ED patients with VDD. In this study, we investigated whether adding vitamin D to daily tadalafil treatment would be beneficial in ED patients with VDD. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> A total of 111 patients with VDD accompanying ED were retrospectively evaluated between January 2016 and December 2019. Patients were divided into 2 groups according to the treatment they received. Group 1 (<i>n</i> = 58) was treated with daily oral tadalafil 5 mg, while group 2 (<i>n</i> = 53) received oral tadalafil 5 mg and 4,000 IU vitamin D3. Total International Index of Erectile Function-15 (IIEF-15) scores and vitamin D levels of the groups were compared at the end of the study. <b><i>Results:</i></b> The mean vitamin D level was increased statistically significant in group 2, but no difference was seen in group 1 (<i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.001 and <i>p</i> &#x3e; 0.05, respectively). There was a significant increase in median erectile function, orgasmic function, sexual desire, sexual satisfaction, and overall satisfaction scores in both groups (<i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.001). However, the increase in median erectile function and sexual desire scores was significantly higher in group 2 compared to group 1 at the end of the study (<i>p</i> = 0.01 and <i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.001, respectively). <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> We found that adding vitamin D to 5 mg oral daily tadalafil treatment may have an additional positive effect on erectile function and sexual desire in ED patients with VDD.