Heart Attacks and Sex

Heart Attacks and Sex

Introduction

For healthy, middle-aged people, sexual intercourse, performed at a typical level of exertion, translates into a risk for heart attack of about one to two in one million. Though movies and television shows make having a heart attack during sex seem like a common occurrence, the odds of literally succumbing to passion are quite low, experts say. (Hopcroft, 2007) Researchers at Harvard Medical School have found that sexual activity is a contributing factor in less than one percent of heart attacks. But experts also say that if you're a person who suffers from cardiovascular disease--or even if it runs in your family--it's important to ask your doctor what type of sexual activity is safe. This paper discusses the relationship between hearts attacks and sex.

Discussion

If a healthy, middle-aged man has sexual intercourse with an unfamiliar and/or younger partner in unfamiliar surroundings, typical exertion levels may double -- partly due to the man being motivated to try more vigorous sexual activity than usual. Feelings of heightened excitement, anxiety and/or guilt also can potentially raise the risk for a heart attack. (Bell, 2006)

The link between cardiovascular disease and sexual dysfunction is well established, at least in men. Researchers have known for years that erectile dysfunction (ED) is disproportionately common among men with CVD (and even among those with risk factors for CVD, such as diabetes and high blood pressure). While erectile dysfunction can result from a number of factors, including psychological ones, the majority of cases can be traced to vascular problems.

The shared mechanism linking ED and CVD is believed to originate in the endothelium, the thin layer of cells that lines blood vessels. Risk factors such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and cigarette smoking prevent cells in the endothelium from releasing nitric oxide. This compromises the ability of blood vessels to dilate, which can lead to both atherosclerosis and erectile dysfunction. (O'connor, 2009)

Atherosclerosis, the hardening and narrowing of the arteries that causes coronary heart disease, can affect the arteries that pump blood into the penis just as readily as those that surround the heart. But endothelial problems can also prevent the so-called smooth muscle in the penis from relaxing properly. In either case, erections become harder to sustain.

For a long time it was thought that ED was strictly a side effect of CVD and atherosclerosis, but experts now believe that ED may actually precede heart problems. A 2005 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association described ED as a "harbinger" of cardiovascular events. The study, which analyzed more than 4,000 men without symptoms of CVD or ED, found that the men who subsequently experienced ED were nearly 50% more likely than those who did not to experience a cardiovascular event within seven years.

“It's important to know that just looking fine doesn't necessarily mean you have a healthy heart,” says Dr. Chapunoff. “It's important that both the patient and their partner talk to their doctor about any sexual dysfunction, because it could signal a cardiac ...