If you've had a heart attack, you don't have to avoid sex
for fear of having another one, researchers report.
Many people who've had a heart attack worry that too much
physical activity could trigger a repeat event. But after reviewing data
collected on 536 heart disease patients between the ages of 30 and 70, the
researchers found sexual activity requires about the same amount of exertion as
climbing two flights of stairs or taking a brisk walk.
The patients completed questionnaires about their sexual activity.
In the months leading up to their heart attack, nearly 15 percent did not have
sex during this time, almost 5 percent had sex less than once per month, about
25 percent had sex less than once a week, and 55 percent had sex at least once
weekly.
The researchers analyzed the sexual activity the patients
experienced in the 12 months before their heart attack and estimated the link
between the frequency of their sexual encounters with future events, such as
having a fatal heart attack, stroke or cardiovascular death.
During 10 years of follow-up, the researchers found 100
adverse heart events occurred among the patients in the study. Sexual activity,
however, was not a risk factor for future problems, the research letter,
published Sept. 21 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology,
revealed.
After evaluating the timing of the last sexual activity
before the heart attack, only 0.7 percent of the participants reported sex
within an hour before their heart attack. More than 78 percent, however,
reported that their last sexual activity occurred more than 24 hours before the
heart attack.
"Based on our data, it seems very unlikely that sexual
activity is a relevant trigger of heart attack," study author Dr. Dietrich
Rothenbacher, chair of the Institute of Epidemiology and Medical Biometry at
Ulm University in Ulm, Germany, said in a news release from the American
College of Cardiology.
"Less than half of men and less than a third of women
are getting information about sexual activity after heart attack from their
doctors. It is important to reassure patients that they need not be worried and
should resume their usual sexual activity," Rothenbacher added.
But the researchers said that various heart drugs could
cause sexual side effects, including erectile dysfunction. When used in
combination, certain heart drugs and medications used to treat erectile
dysfunction can cause a drop in blood pressure. The study authors said that
patients should be made aware of these risks.
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