Doctors who hailed the drug Viagra as a breakthrough for impotent men are predicting that it could have unexpected benefits for women suffering sexual difficulties.
Physicians are basing their hopes on evidence that the drug works upon chemical pathways and tissues that are remarkably similar in men and women. That doesn't mean the drug will have the same dramatic benefits in women, but researchers are eager to find out.
Pfizer Inc., a pharmaceutical giant that is expected to reap huge profits from sales to men, has been testing the drug for two
years among European women who have sexual dysfunction. Recently, a urologist at the University of Maryland Medical Center won a grant to test the drug among women in the United States.
The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine anticipates starting a female-dysfunction trial of its own. Even if Viagra fails these tests, researchers say the drug has sparked interest in a women's health issue that -- like many others in medicine -- has long been neglected.
"All the things that cause dysfunction in men cause dysfunction in women," said Dr. Jennifer Berman, the UM urologist who plans begin a clinical trial in September at Boston University. "But nobody addressed these things before or even asked."
Until recently, she said, "The whole concept has brought about snickers from peers and colleagues."
Three weeks ago, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Viagra for the treatment of male impotence, the inability to achieve or maintain an erection. The first shipments arrived in the nation's pharmacies last week, but men who had been following the advance publicity began calling their doctors and pharmacists as soon as the government acted.
"We've been getting a lot of calls from people who are interested -- along the lines of what's happened with the obesity drugs," said William Popomaronis, owner of the Epic Pharmacy on Harford Road.
'10 new calls a day'
"It's been unbelievable," said Berman. "We've probably been getting 10 new calls a day." Although the calls are coming from men, Berman said she can imagine the day when Viagra and products like it will be used to treat couples -- not just the man or woman.
"The talk is that this is the sex drug of the '90s," she said. "If the man gets fixed and the woman still has problems, it's not going to do them any good."
