Viagra increases blood flow to the brain and may help prevent dementia. 22.04.2025

 Sildenafil, or Viagra, increases blood flow to the brain and improves the function of brain blood vessels in patients at increased risk of vascular dementia, according to a new Oxford University trial.

 Sildenafil, also known as "Viagra," increases blood flow to the brain and may help prevent dementia. Global health, brain health, medical sciences, and neuroscience. Sildenafil, or Viagra, increases blood flow to the brain and improves the function of brain blood vessels in patients at increased risk of vascular dementia, according to a new Oxford University trial.

 A potentially pivotal step in the fight against this debilitating condition can be seen in this new study, which was published in Circulation Research. Dr.  "This is the first trial to show that sildenafil gets into the blood vessels in the brain in people with this condition, improving blood flow and how responsive these blood vessels are," Alastair Webb, Associate Professor at the Wolfson Centre for Prevention of Stroke and Dementia at Oxford University, stated. Vascular dementia is most frequently caused by persistent damage to the brain's small blood vessels, which is linked to these two important factors. This demonstrates the drug's potential to prevent dementia, which needs to be tested in larger trials and is widely available and well tolerated. 

This research is important because it has the potential to change how vascular dementia, for which there are no specific treatments, is treated and prevented. Not only is chronic damage to the brain's small blood vessels the most common cause of vascular dementia, but it also plays a role in 30% of strokes and 80% of brain bleeds. Because these conditions are exacerbated by impaired blood vessel function, reduced blood flow to the brain, and high blood pressure, the results of this trial are especially important. 75 participants with signs of mild to moderate small vessel disease participated in the OxHARP trial, which was a meticulously designed double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Over the course of three weeks, each participant was randomly assigned to receive sildenafil, a placebo, and cilostazol, a similar medication. 

The effects of the drugs were evaluated using cardiovascular physiology tests, functional MRI scans, and ultrasound. Key findings include: According to ultrasound and MRI scans, sildenafil increased blood flow in both large and small brain vessels. Improved cerebrovascular function can be seen in the increased blood flow response to carbon dioxide caused by Sildenafil. Blood vessel resistance in the brain was reduced by both cilostazol and sildenafil. Compared to cilostazol, sildenafil had fewer side effects, particularly fewer cases of diarrhea. In the future, larger trials to confirm these findings and investigate sildenafil's potential to prevent vascular dementia on a larger scale are the next steps. The Wellcome Trust provided generous funding for this study, which was supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research. We are particularly grateful to all partners and participants. "Professor Webb's findings are very encouraging and highlight the potential for vascular dementia prevention using existing drugs that target the underlying reduction in flow in the small blood vessels in the brain," stated Professor Peter Rothwell, founding director of the Wolfson Centre for Prevention of Stroke and Dementia.