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

To: Mick Mørmøny who wrote (7156)	3/7/1999 9:15:00 PM
From: BigKNY3	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9523

Virility Rules As Viagra Is Released On To The Market Johannesburg (The Sowetan, March 5, 1999) - Will the anti-impotence drug Viagra be a milestone for men's relationships in the way that the birth control pill was for women? South Africans will discover the answer to this themselves today when the much-vaunted drug is released on the market. "It will be significant. Man has searched for this since the beginning of time," said Professor Johan Naude, head of urology at the University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital. "Viagra is to sexual medicine what the Wright Brothers were to flying - a breakthrough.Much of traditional medicine and witch-doctory is based on aphrodisiacs. While Viagra is not an aphrodisiac and does not increase desire, it enables men to perform." Viagra is the first successful oral treatment for male impotence. "For years we have been able to treat impotence but the treatments were reasonably unpleasant," said Naude. Among these methods were an injection into the penis, a vacuum device or a surgical implant. Viagra is a blue, diamond-shaped pill which will be sold in three strengths: 25mg, 50mg and 100mg. The price is likely to range from R70 to R110 a pill, depending on the strength. Naude said most men would use the 50mg tablets: "Viagra works across the board for 70 percent of men with sexual dysfunction." An international trial found that men given Viagra had a 65 to 88 percent success rate, compared to a 39 percent success rate for men given placebos. While the contraceptive pill is targeted at women of reproductive age, Viagra is directed at older men with erectile dysfunction. It is a prescribed drug specifically, and only, for men with impotence problems. Dr Konji Sebati from Pfizer Inc, the company that developed Viagra, said research worldwide showed that 50 percent of men over 40 years suffer from differing degrees of erectile dysfunction. Naude has no idea how many potential users of Viagra there will be in South Africa but said "If you ask men 'Would you like to improve your sexual function?', nearly 100 percent will say 'yes'." But Viagra will be prescribed strictly for men with sexual dysfunction. They will have to consult a doctor, have a complete medical history and examination to determine the cause of their impotence and decide together if Viagra is the appropriate treatment. Once prescribed, the tablet is taken about an hour before sexual activity though it may be taken any time from 30 minutes to four hours before sexual activity. South African medical aid societies are demanding pre-authorisation from their clients for Viagra and it will not be available in the public health sector. Men who are currently using medication that contains nitrates (such as nitroglycerine for coronary heart disease) should not use Viagra because, if taken together, they can dramatically lower the blood pressure. If the blood pressure plunges, it can trigger a severe heart crisis. "There is a warning for the patient on nitrates. It is a definite no-no, " Sebati said. Naude said that detailed warnings have been written on the package as well as sent to emergency rooms, doctors and pharmacists around the country. "There is still slight concern that a patient with an acute episode will not be able to inform the doctor and his partner may not know he is on Viagra." The Medicines Control Council delayed the sale of Viagra, after its initial approval in May last year, until there were stronger warnings of its potential misuse on the packaging. "We had to do a lot of education about how to prescribe Viagra and take the necessary steps to ensure it is used correctly," Sebati said. "No ethical doctor anywhere would prescribe Viagra for a patient with no dysfunction. It would not do anything for him." Sebati said Viagra is a product for patients with a genuine medical problem, like other products Pfizer makes for hypertension, cardiovascular and central nervous system problems. "There is a perception among yuppies that Viagra is a party drug that can do a power of good," said Naude. "This is dangerous and nonsensical. It is unnecessary for a man to expose himself to the risk of the medication and the side effects if he doesn't need it. It is a pharmacologically active drug." Viagra - with sildenafil citrate as the active ingredient - works by increasing the body's ability to achieve and maintain an erection during sexual stimulation, according to consumer information on the drug. It does this by inhibiting an enzyme found mainly in the penis (PDE5) and allowing a chemical produced during sexual stimulation (cyclic GMP) to persist longer. This increases the chance of a better blood flow and thereby an erection. It has side effects which include headaches, flushing, upset stomach and diarrhoea, a stuffy nose and urinary tract infection but these are infrequent and affect no more than 10 percent of users. In fact, Viagra was approved quicker than any other drug in the United States. Japan - which has not yet approved the birth control pill - passed the drug in record time. By Claire Keeton