Viagra reaches the 10-year milestone
Wednesday, March 26th 2008, 4:00 AM
Thursday, men around the world - and their lovers - have good reason to rejoice. The day marks 10 years since "the little blue pill" that's given a big boost to the sex lives of 35 million men was cleared for use by the Food and Drug Administration.
And Viagra, the miracle drug that helps guys get it on, is still going strong - sales remain big a decade after it was first prescribed.
"When it first came out, there was a big explosion," says Erik Goluboff, a urologist at New York-Presbyterian Hospital's Allen Pavilion. "And since then, [interest has] gone up."
The FDA approved the diamond-shaped pill on March 27, 1998, as the first drug to treat erectile dysfunction.
The advent of Viagra pushed ED into the spotlight, turning what was once considered an embarrassing issue to a simple health problem that can be easily, um, straightened out.
"People didn't really talk about it," says Dr. Michael Werner, a sexual-dysfunction specialist. "The estimates were that less than one in 100 men were getting treated. Not only did Viagra give a very easy treatment approach to this, but they did so much advertising that it became something that people talked about."
More and more men began showing up at urologists' offices, eager to pick things up in the bedroom.
"I think it was the second sexual revolution, and this one really was great," Werner says.
Public awareness really kicked in when former Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole appeared on TV, plugging the pill.
"You know, it's a little embarrassing to talk about ED, but it's so important to millions of men and their partners that I decided to talk about it publicly," Dole said in the commercial.
He drew lots of unintended laughs, but the revolution had begun.
"People may have been joking about it and saying, 'That's not me,'" says Werner. "But they were aware that others had the problem and there was really a solution."
Over the years, far hipper characters have been associated with the drug. "American Idol" judge Simon Cowell recently revealed that he turned down a $2 million offer to be the new spokesman for Viagra.
Several sports figures have endorsed it, including former New York Ranger Guy Lafleur.
Ozzy Osbourne confessed to popping the pill when he's looking for some lovin' with wife Sharon, who apparently is also a fan. "He's like a rabbit," she told
www.AskMen.com . "We have sex every night we're together."
When customs officials poked through Rush Limbaugh's bag after a flight, they discovered Viagra prescribed to someone else. Following the 2006 incident, Limbaugh's lawyer said the prescription was written in Limbaugh's doctor's name to protect his privacy.
Limbaugh later joked on his radio show: "I had a great time in the Dominican Republic. Wish I could tell you about it."
They're far from the only Viagra enthusiasts. According to Pfizer, the company that makes the drug, last year's sales reached $1.7 billion, more than double the 1998 revenues.
Sales peaked at nearly $1.9 billion 2003 and dropped when two other impotence pills, Levitra and Cialis, hit the market. But revenues slowly started rising again in 2006, and the drug remains the most-prescribed oral ED treatment.
"Cialis and Levitra have made some inroads, but Viagra is still the predominant one on the market," Goluboff says, adding the reason may be as simple as Viagra being out there longer and having name recognition.
Viagra has also recently made headlines for treating medical problems other than ED. A two-year-old British boy takes the pill four times a day to control a heart and lung condition that causes high blood pressure.
An English pet owner feeds Viagra to her dog to treat his enlarged heart, caused by a lung infection.
"Viagra was originally developed as a heart drug in England," Goluboff explains. "And the side effect of it was that it caused erections in those patients."
The active ingredient in Viagra makes blood vessels dilate. "If you dilate a blood vessel, it can hold more blood and it will lower the blood pressure," says Goluboff.
While the drug has been known to cause side effects ranging from headaches to heart attacks, doctors say it's relatively safe for healthy guys.
Viagra may also be responsible for saving the lives of people who didn't even know they had a problem.
"It brings patients to urologists' offices, and then we can screen them for other diseases," Goluboff says, adding that "erectile dysfunction can be a marker of cardiovascular disease."
Steven Lamm, a Manhattan physician and author of "The Hardness Factor," says that high blood pressure and diabetes are also linked to impotence.
"Erections are a barometer of men's health," he says. "It's also a link to stress levels and moods."
Viagra isn't only for older men. Younger guys who may have had an episode or two with a new partner where they couldn't perform have asked for the pill as a backup. It's usually a psychological problem that's solved when they get over the anxiety.
Men who don't even have a problem are downing the drug. "I've spoken to a lot of men who have experimented with Viagra," says Stephen Perrine, editor in chief of Best Life magazine. "A lot of men who are trying these drugs are men who have been diagnosed with ED, and a lot are not.
"One of the things that appeals to men is the idea that this is a performance-enhancing drug," he adds. "And in our culture today ... the idea of being superpotent is really appealing to men."
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