The purpose of the study was to evaluate the association between alcohol consumption and risk of erectile dysfunction (ED).
PubMed was searched for reports published before June 2019. Data were extracted and combined odds ratios (ORs) calculated with random-effects models.
Finally, 46 studies were included (216,461 participants). The results of our meta-analysis indicated that there was a significant association between regular alcohol consumption and ED (OR 0.89, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.81-0.97). There was no indication of publication bias (Egger's test, p = 0.37). In the stratified analysis, the pooled OR of ED for light to moderate and high alcohol consumption was 0.82 (95% CI: 0.72-0.94) and 0.82 (95% CI: 0.67-1.00), respectively. No variable related to the source of heterogeneity was found in univariate and multivariate meta-regression analyses. A dose-response meta-analysis suggested that a nonlinear relationship between alcohol consumption and risk of ED was observed (p for nonlinearity <0.001).
A J-shaped relationship between alcohol consumption and risk of ED was observed. Alcohol should be taken in moderate quantities in order to obtain the dual effect of disinhibition and relaxation. If taken chronically, it could provoke vascular damages.
Urologia internationalis. 2021 Sep 14 [Epub ahead of print]
Shen Li, Ju-Min Song, Ke Zhang, Chang-Le Zhang
Department of Medical Administration, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China., Office of Party Committee, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China., Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.