Female 'Viagra' drug underway
Drug being tested may enhance sexual arousal in
post-menopausal women
By Aarti Shah
Daily Texan Staff
A new drug being tested at the University may help to alleviate female sexual dysfunction
(FSAD) in post-menopausal women by enhancing sexual arousal.
UT psychologist Cindy Meston conducted the study over nine months, during which she
randomly distributed an oral medication or a placebo to 23 post-menopausal women while
evaluating variations in vaginal bloodflow.
"This is very exciting because this is the first drug to have a significant impact on
women's sexual arousal," Meston said.
The drug, NMI-870, which was developed by NitroMed, a pharmaceutical company, combines
yohimbine and nitric acid to increase blood flow to the vagina. Yohimbine has previously
been available to treat FSAD but was not very effective, Meston said.
While it is too soon to determine the long-term effects of the drug, short-term side
effects are minimal, a spokesperson for NitroMed said.
Testing of the drug, which is currently in phase two, will occur over four phases before
being proposed for approval from the Federal Drug Administration.
The first phase typically involves using animals to evaluate the safety of the drug for
humans.
"The FDA will approve a drug that not only increases the blood flow to women's
genitals, but improves their sexual satisfaction," Meston said.
The next phase of testing will evaluate the effects of the drug in environments outside of
the laboratory, to determine if the drug enhances women's sexual satisfaction.
Some call the drug the female equivalent of Viagra, but unlike its male counterpart, it is
not likely to be covered by insurance companies, Meston said.
"Insurance companies pay for Viagra because arousal is necessary for men to
reproduce," Meston said. "But, there is no evidence linking female sexual
satisfaction with their ability to reproduce. Unfortunately, this will keep most insurance
companies from covering this type of drug in their policies."
Meston said the success of Viagra has increased awareness of the need for drugs to treat
female sexual disorders, but does not believe they will ever gain the same popularity of
drugs used to treat male sexual disorders.
"Men and women's sexual arousal is influenced by different factors," Meston
said. "Women's arousal is influenced by what kind of day they had, the condition of
their relationship things that a drug would never be able to change."
Meston is currently testing another drug, also designed to treat FSAD, with a different
pharmaceutical firm, but declined to comment on the details of the studies.
The results of the study were announced Saturday at the 26th annual conference of the
International Academy of Sex Research in Paris, France. |
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