New Delhi. Heart patients and paralysis survivors can resume usual marital activity as soon as they feel ready to do it, said Dr KK Aggarwal, President Heart Care Foundation of India.

After recovery heart patients and stroke survivors may feel depressed, which is normal, and in 85% of cases it goes away within three months. If a person can walk one kilometre or climb two flights of stairs without any discomfort in the chest or breathlessness, he or she can indulge in normal marital activity without any cardiac risk. It is very rare for patients with heart disease to die while having marital activity. However, Dr. Aggarwal cautioned that extramarital affairs are dangerous to heart patients as they are done in unfamiliar situations, time and places & with younger partners.

Dr. Aggarwal further said that first-onset erectile dysfunction after the age of 40 may also be an indication of underlying coronary blockages as blockages in the male organ goes hand in hand with blockages in the channels supplying blood to the heart. Viagra-like drugs are a boon for heart patients as they can improve blood circulation to the male organ and make them perform better. However, these patients should not be on nitrates as combination of nitrate and Viagra can cause deadly lowering of blood pressure.

Also people with heart blockages who are unstable, who have not had a relationship with their partner for years should not indulge into a marital activity using Viagra-like drugs without a medical supervision. Any unaccustomed exercise, in patients with underlying coronary blockages, which may be silent, can precipitate heart attack and sudden cardiac death.