Viagra may affect sperm quality

VIAGRA may be championed by men who have had their sex lives improved, but the downside is it may harm male fertility, a new study has found.

Laboratory studies conducted at Queen's University Belfast, UK suggest that taking the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra may adversely affect sperm function and possibly male fertility.

Recreational users of Viagra need to be informed of the drug's potentially harmful effects on sperm function, the investigators say.

In their experiments, Dr. David R. J. Glenn and colleagues observed that exposure of cultured sperm to Viagra, compared to no exposure, led to a "sustained enhancement of motility," both in numbers of progressively motile sperm and their velocity.

However, exposure to Viagra - at concentrations equivalent to the average maximum total blood concentration present 30 minutes after a single oral dose of 100 milligrams - also caused a premature "acrosome reaction."

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