NHS Choices has conducted an assessment of press reports that claimed “Viagra could make you deaf.”

The reports are based on research that examined instances of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL) in patients taking sildenafil and similar drugs for erectile dysfunction  The study found 47 cases of hearing loss associated with taking this class of drug, two-thirds of which occurred within 24 hours of taking the drug. The study was carried out by researchers from Charing Cross Hospital, Stoke Mandeville Hospital and the Royal Marsden Hospital and the findings were published in ‘The Laryngoscope.’

The assessment notes that both the Daily Mail and The Daily Telegraph’s reports were factually correct, and helpfully included comments from the MHRA, which pointed out that reports of an adverse event to a drug do not prove cause and effect. It concluded that this report is valuable in drawing attention to a possible and serious side effect of sildenafil and other PDE-5 inhibitors, but it is worth pointing out that only eight cases of hearing loss associated with these drugs were reported in the UK. Furthermore, the MHRA said complaints of hearing loss linked to sildenafil are extremely rare. Further research is needed to establish how common (or rare) this side effect might be. Men who are concerned that they have had side effects from sildenafil and other PDR-5 inhibitors should see their doctors.