July 6, 2010 -- Men prescribed drugs for erectile dysfunction are two to three times more likely to contract sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), particularly HIV or chlamydia, than men who are not prescribed ED treatments, researchers report.

An analysis of insurance records of 1.4 million men shows that there may be a population at risk for contracting and spreading sexually transmitted diseases and that this group should be targeted for safe-sex counseling.

"Anyone who does not practice safer sex, no matter their age, can contract an STD," says study author Anupam B. Jena, MD, PhD, of the Massachusetts General Hospital department of medicine. "Even though STDs are quite rare among older men -- on the order of 1 per 1,000 individuals -- we found that STD rates in men who used ED drugs were two to three times higher, both before and after they filled their first prescription."

There is no cause-and-effect association between erectile dysfunction treatments and sexually transmitted diseases, but the findings do suggest that people who use such treatments could benefit from interventions that emphasize safe-sex practices that reduce risk of infection.