Heart Disease/Afib - Dilziatem medication causeing decreased libido

[SDP]

Before I was diagnosed with Peyronies Disease, I was taking a blood thinner called coumadin/warafin and a beta blocker called atelenol because I was told about 5 years ago I had heart disease (a 50% blockage in my "widow maker" artery which was causing afib (irregular heartbeat)) and these two meds would decrease chance of a stroke. After the Peyronies Disease diagnosis, I found out that one of the side effects of atelenol is Peyronies Disease, so I saw my cardiologist again a few months ago and he said instead of atelenol he could prescribe a calcium channel blocker called Diltiazem which he said did not have any effect on Peyronies Disease. Additionally he said I didn't need to take the coumadin anymore since my afib was very mild after doing an EKG. So, now I am taking daily Diltiazem, baby aspirin, Simvastatin, Gemfibrocil (the last two for cholesterol),. Since I have been on the Diltiazem, I have experienced much lower libido and just saw doing a search that a side effect of this med is decreased libido. Does anyone on this forum with Peyronies Disease also have heart disease/afib, and if so:

- are you taking Dilziatem, and if so, has it decreased your libido?
- if not taking Diltiazem, what med(s) are you taking to control your afib?

As a side note, I had my testosterone checked a few weeks ago and was told it's on the low side of normal range and was told to go back in a week to get it checked again to see if any changes for comparison.

Thanks...

[Obsie]

Hi SDP
Well your case is not simple. There are known ocurrences of loss of libido for warfarin (0,03%), but also for diltiazem (0,07%). As for statins, they reduce testosterone but it is unknown if it is a side effect or a part of the mode of action. But in any case, statins do reduce libido. And finally we have gemfibrozil which has been reported to lower libido in some cases.

It is highly probable that diltiazem is not the only culprit, and that all these drugs work together to give you this effect. The only way to know would be to stop taking one of those drugs during one week and see if sexual potency returns, then take it again and see if the problem arises again. Then, the culprit can be replaced by another molecule, if there is any. This can be done only under the supervision of your doctor or cardiologist.

Also make sure you do not take any additional drug or supplements without consulting your doctor first, drug interactions should not be taken lightly.

[SDP]

Thanks Obsie - great ideas. I'll ask my cardiologist about it.