Side Effects of α-Blocker Use: Retrograde Ejaculation
Abstract
There are currently 5 α-blockers that are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). The American Urological Association guidelines committee believes that all α-blockers are equally effective. However, α-blockers differ in their likelihood of causing abnormal ejaculation. This article discusses the effects on ejaculatory function, and specifically retrograde ejaculation, of the currently available α-blockers being used to treat men with LUTS due to benign prostatic hyperplasia.
In the 1980s, the recognition by Lepor and colleagues that prostatic smooth muscle tension was mediated by α1-adrenoceptors led to the development of α-blockade as a treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS).1 This dynamic component of prostatic obstruction accounts for approximately 40% of outflow obstruction due to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).2 There are currently 5 α-blockers that are US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved to treat LUTS: doxazosin, terazosin, tamsulosin, alfuzosin, and silodosin. The American Urological Association...