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Biotech / Medical : PFE (Pfizer) How high will it go? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Anthony Wong who wrote (2675)	5/21/1998 7:54:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9523

Associated Press - Warning on Viagra, Heart Drugs By John Hendren AP Business Writer Thursday, May 21, 1998; 5:40 p.m. EDT NEW YORK (AP) -- With nearly 1 million men now taking Viagra, paramedics have begun asking heart patients if they're taking the potency pill before giving a heart attack drug that can be lethal if mixed with Viagra. Pfizer Inc. on Thursday repeated earlier warnings that patients on nitroglycerine and related drugs shouldn't use Viagra, a caution that has been on the drug's label since its approval in March. Using the two drugs together may cause patients' blood pressure to fall to dangerous levels. Although doctors usually won't prescribe Viagra with the heart drugs, paramedics may be administering nitroglycerin to patients suffering from chest pains who may have taken the potency pill. So paramedics on emergency squads in Boston and Richmond, Va., have started asking men if they use the drug. Some officials fear many men will be hesitant to admit they're impotent. In some cases, ''they are just too embarrassed to tell a stranger they are using it,'' said Dr. George Philippides, consultant to Boston Emergency Medical Services. It sent a memo on Wednesday urging emergency technicians to ask all patients with chest pains if they've taken Viagra. ''We're imploring patients to be honest,'' he said. Pfizer spokeswoman Mariann Caprino said the company hasn't seen any negative reactions beyond what it saw while testing the drug, but she would not elaborate. Eight patients died during the trials. None of those deaths were attributed to the drug itself, Ms. Caprino said. The company is required to report the deaths of all patients regardless of the cause while testing a new drug. She declined to say whether there have been any deaths since the drug hit the market. ''People with ED (erectile dysfunction) tend to frequently suffer from serious underlying health conditions, such as diabetes or coardiovascular disease,'' she said. Diabetes, prostate cancer and other conditions can lead to impotence, a condition that disproportionately affects older men. ''In older men, the same disease process that causes blockages in the heart arteries can lead to some erectile dysfunctions,'' said Philippides, who is also head of coronary care at Boston Medical Center. ''There is certainly quite a bit of crossover here.'' Officials with the Food and Drug Administration would not comment on reports of problems by patients taking the drug, called adverse drug events. Pfizer didn't issue the release due to any reported problem, Ms. Caprino said. ''We hit around the million prescription mark over the last week,'' she said. ''We just wanted to set the record straight.'' Patients picked up 906,368 new prescriptions for Viagra from April 3 through May 8, according to IMS Health, a private industry researcher, in Plymouth Meeting, Pa., that tracks drug sales at the pharmacy level. The total number of Viagra prescriptions was 957,552 as of May 8. The Pfizer statement said patients who are taking nitroglycerin or other nitrates ''should not take Viagra.'' It noted, ''There is a degree of cardiovascular risk associated with sexual activity.'' Although the company is testing the drug on women suffering from some types of sexual dysfunction, the company said, ''Viagra has not been approved for use in women.'' Egypt has banned the sale of Viagra pending more information on its side effects, but in the United States urologists are widely recommending the drug. However, with the explosive popularity of the pill, many men may be at risk of complications from mixing it with some heart medications without knowing it, Philippides said. ''The pharmaceutical company has been very clear on its packaging about dangers, and doctors are well aware of the dangers, but the media focused in on the incredible profits being made and lost sight of the fact that it can be harmful,'' he said. c Copyright 1998 The Associated Press