Migraine and erectile dysfunction: Evidence from a population-based case-control study

Background: This case-control study aimed to estimate the association between erectile dysfunction (ED) and migraines using a nationwide population-based database in Taiwan.Methods: The data used for this matched case-control study were retrieved from the Taiwan Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000. We identified 5763 patients with ED as the cases and randomly selected 17,289 patients as the controls. Conditional logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratios (OR) for prior migraine between cases and controls.Results: After adjusting for hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidaemia, renal disease, coronary heart disease, obesity, and alcohol abuse/alcohol dependence syndrome, conditional logistic regression revealed that among ED patients the odds of having been previously diagnosed with migraines was 1.63 (95% CI, 1.39-1.91) that of the control group. This risk was more pronounced in younger groups, with the highest risk being detected among those aged between 30 and 39 years. After adjusting for the above mentioned comorbidities, ED patients aged between 30 and 39 years were found to be at 1.98 (95% CI, 1.67-2.23) times the risk of controls for having been previously diagnosed with migraines.Conclusion: We conclude that ED is associated with having been previously diagnosed with migraines, particularly in younger populations.