Open AccessThe cardiovascular response to sexual activity: Do we know enough?
Author(s) -
Falk Rodney H.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
clinical cardiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.263
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1932-8737
pISSN - 0160-9289
DOI - 10.1002/clc.4960240403
Subject(s) - medicine , erectile dysfunction , myocardial infarction , sexual intercourse , intensive care medicine , blood pressure , sexual dysfunction , cardiology , population , environmental health
Interest in comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation over the past 25 years spawned a series of small investigations concerning the heart rate, blood pressure, and ischemic response to sexual intercourse. This information was adequate for advising patients about return to sexual activity after a myocardial infarction or cardiac surgery. However, the introduction of medications for erectile dysfunction enabled impotent cardiac patients to engage in sexual activity and has highlighted the need for more detailed information concerning cardiovascular physiology during coitus. Review of the medical literature indicates a remarkable paucity of such data despite dramatic advances in most other aspects of cardiovascular physiology and pathophysiology. This brief paper gives an overview of the current knowledge of the cardiovascular response to sexual activity and, within the framework of advances in cardiology, highlights areas where it appears important to fill in the knowledge gap.