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Biotech / Medical : VVUS: VIVUS INC. (NASDAQ) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mkilloran who wrote (8579)	5/27/1998 1:09:00 AM
From: BoNg-N-BoNg	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 23519

here's the complete article where gman copied it from Philippine Daily Enquirer... >>>> Subject: Vivus in the Philippines Date: Tue, May 26, 1998 22:26 EDT From: Gman332 Message-id: <1998052702260300.WAA02202@ladder01.news.aol.com> This seminar in the Philippines was sponsored by the Janssen research group. Janssen is a division of Johnson and Johnson. I haven't seen any other connection with Vivus and JNJ. A DRUG that can help men overcome impotence is attempting to erect an early lead over Viagra in the Philippine market. Called MUSE (Medicated Urethral System for Erection), the drug will be sold in the country starting next month. It could help men achieve and sustain erection for as long as one hour said Dr. Raymond Costabile yesterday in a news conference at the Westin Philippine Plaza. Costabile is a urologist at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C. While Viagra is taken orally and could sustain the erection for only seven to 15 minutes, MUSE works by delivering "alprostadil pellets" to the urethra (tip of the penis) through a slender applicator and can sustain an erection for about an hour, according to Costabile. He said men taking Viagra must get stimulation to get an erection. But users of MUSE, according to him, are provided with "natural-feeling and spontaneous" erections that begin five to 10 minutes after dosing. Costabile said a study made by the US National Institutes of Health showed that sexual relations between couples "significantly" improved after the husbands tried MUSE. The study found that the patients' orgasms improved as the erection was "very natural." But the drawback is, MUSE is prescribed for use only once in 24 hours. Costabile said people with heart problems and hypertension would not have to worry if they would try the drug so long as their doctors had approved of it. The drug, manufactured by Vivus Inc, is now available in the United States. A dosage of MUSE costs about $20 dollars, or P800 when it is sold in the Philippines. Costabile said impotence was a "real medical problem" that could be treated. Urologists claim that before the year 2000, 47 million men worldwide would be suffering from impotence. In the Philippines, only 10 percent of the men are seeking treatment and that the number increases each year, according to Dr. Ernesto Arada III, president of the Philippine Urological Association. Asked if $20 was a lot to pay to have a good sex, Arada said, "Persons who have had no sex for the past five years or so would find that amount too cheap." Costabile said "men with erectile dysfunction, more often than not, refuse to admit they are impotent." In fact, he said, some 20 to 30 million men in the US were impotent but only about 10 percent of them seek treatment. Costabile also tackled the causes, misconceptions and various treatments of impotence. He said one reason for the difficulty of an erection was the contraction of the cells in the penis, preventing blood from flowing in. MUSE, which has substance called "alprostadil," works by opening blood vessels to increase blood flow into the penis. "In short, the drug allows the cells to relax so that blood can flow into the penis," Costabile said. "Blood is trapped, making the penis hard enough for intercourse." Costabile said impotence is usually caused by "unhealthy lifestyle and bad diets." He said alcohol and smoking that aggravate hypertension and heart diseases could lead to impotence. Stress and tension, coupled with psychological problems, could also affect a person's attempts to enjoy sex, he pointed out. "The penis just softens in the middle of the intercourse because of personal and psychological problems or it really fails to erect," he said. "This is far more common than we thought." Costabile said the study showed that regular use of MUSE provided a "corrective" effect as the problematic penis was restored to normal health. Costabile was invited to the Philippines to speak during a symposium on erectile dysfunction organized by the Philippine Urological Association in cooperation with Janssen Research Council at Westin last night. (Philippine Daily Inquirer ) <<<< eom...