Avanafil

Last Tuesday, Vivus, a pharmaceutical company, posted positive results from a trial of its new erectile dysfunction drug that is currently undergoing the review of the US Food and Drug Administration.

Avanafil, the experimental impotence drug, was proved to help 71% of patients to start the sexual intercourse within 15 minutes and after 6 hours after dosing.

In the 80% of cases, the 200-mg dose was sufficient for men suffering from ED, to get and maintain healthy erection.

The results of the clinical trial were published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine.

Commenting on the findings, Irwin Goldstein, the investigator of Avanafil, said: “While PDE-5 inhibitors are currently used as first-line therapy for treatment of erectile dysfunction in the general population, what’s new and novel about avanafil is that it has a fast onset of action and high selectivity.”

The drug will appear in US pharmacies provided it gets the approval from US FDA.

Viaguara Energy Drink

Recently, the confusion caused by the producer of an energy drink Viaguara was averted as the EU High Court made the decision.

The company was refused the right to register a trademark for its Viaguara energy and alcoholic drink. The EU High Court ruled that there are several reasons for that.

First, the Viagura name gives the producer an opportunity “to take unfair advantage of the distinctive character or repute of the trademark Viagra.”

Second, Viagra is a medical drug used to treat erectile dysfunction. It is a prescription drug, meaning that it can be sold only to those patients who have been prescribed to take Viagra by a doctor. Any confusion related to the name of the drug might have serious medical consequences. “Even if the non-alcoholic drinks concerned do not actually have the same benefits as a drug to treat erectile dysfunction, the consumer will be inclined to buy them thinking that he will find similar qualities, such as an increase in libido,” said the representative of the EU High Court.

The manufacturer of Viagra, Pfizer, warmly welcomed the court ruling.

Viagra

Brits suffering from erectile dysfunction might soon face a restricted availability of ED drugs prescriptions under the National Health Service program.

Currently, NHS PCTs (primary care trusts) in a number of counties, including Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire, Berkshire East, Berkshire West and Buckinghamshire, have issued “recommendations” for general practitioners (GPs) to limit prescriptions of ED drugs. They believe that two tablets of Viagra, Levitra or Cialis a month is just enough for the patients.

Even though NHS spokespersons insist that “Any decision made by the PCT cannot prohibit prescribing, but will form a recommendation to GPs,” many GPs in fact say it is being presented as an edict.

Let’s remind that prescriptions of erectile dysfunction drugs like Viagra and Cialis under the NHS scheme is already severely restricted. Only those suffering from diabetes, prostate cancer and multiple sclerosis are eligible for receiving free ED pills.

On Monday, November 14th, Vivus announced that its erectile dysfunction drug Avanfil, which is currently being investigated, acts in as little as it minutes. The proportion of men, in whom the drug was successful, reached 83%. The data was presented at the Sexual Medicine Society of North America in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Commenting on he findings of the clinical trials, one of men’s healthcare professionals said: “Based on the results of the study, this onset of action suggests that avanafil, if approved, is potentially well-suited for on-demand treatment in men with mild to severe erectile dysfunction.”

The news caused an immediate reaction from investors, who have started buying Vivus shares. On Monday afternoon, the price of Vivus shares went up by 1.61% and reached $10.08 per share.

Vivus is to apply for the approval by the US Food and Drug Administration as it completes the trials of Avanfil.

Medications linked to ED

The results of the research published lately in the British Journal of Urology suggest that erectile dysfunction – the most widespread sexual problem among men – might be linked not only to aging and psychological factors, as previously believed.

Scientists from Southern California are determined that medications are one of the factors behind impotence. In their opinion, drugs are even more dangerous than stress or old age as they put men at a higher risk of developing erectile dysfunction.

Some of the drugs have more significant effect on men’s sexual function than others; these dangerous drugs include beta blockers, anti-depressants and similar anxiety medications.

During their study, researchers analyzed the effect of prescribed drugs as well as of the over-the-counter drugs. They discovered that men taking numerous medications suffered from a more severe form of erectile dysfunction than those who were not on any kind of medication. As such, almost 30% of men taking 10+ medications had severe potency problems, while only 6.9% of those taking 2 or fewer medications faced the same issues.

Commenting on the findings, Diana C. Londono, urologist at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center, recommended men having difficulty with ED, to “consider curtailing any OTC medications that you don’t need. And then really work with your doctor to see if you can cut down on any of your prescription medications.”

ED

Results of the latest study, published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, suggest that shock therapy might help men suffering from erectile dysfunction overcome their problem.

Researchers from the Rambam Healthcare Campus in Haifa, Israel, found out that extracorporeal shock wave therapy significantly improved the potency of those men, who were not responding well to drug treatment.

Men involved in the study went through 12 shock therapy sessions and were required to fill in a questionnaire assessing their sexual function.

According to the responses of men, they started to see improvements in their sexual life and as many as 30% of patients even reported normal levels of erectile function, indicating they no longer need medications.

Commenting on the findings of Israeli scientists, Dr. Andrew Kramer, a urologist at the University of Maryland Medical Center, said that the results are “somewhat counterintuitive” and that the “the therapy may never be mainstream even if the benefits of extracorporeal shock wave therapy are confirmed by future research.”

ED

Recently, an overview of the conditions, habits and lifestyles that might lead to erectile dysfunction was published by 121doc, online healthcare provider.

Reason #1 is Stress

It is heavily linked to impotence as 40% of men blame it for erectile dysfunction.

Reason #2 is Diabetes

This disease causes impotence within 10 years.

Reason #3 is Unhealthy lifestyle

Namely, this is smoking, drinking and drug abuse, all of which impair the functioning of blood vessels.

Reason #4 is Inactivity

Men who do not do any sports and have a low nutrition diet are more prone to ED.

Reason #5 is Age

Old men suffer from a range of sexual diseases, including erectile dysfunction.

Reason #6 is Anxiety

Impotence is known to be caused not only by physiological, but also by psychological factors.

Reason #7 is Depression

It works just like anxiety, hampering men’s sexual performance from within.

Reason #8 is Fatigue

Just like stress, it accounts for almost half of ED cases.

Reason #9 is Surgery

This is especially true when it comes to surgical treatment of prostate, bladder, colon or rectum cancer.

Finally, reason #10 is Medications

When taken without prescription or in heavy dosages, medications might cause ED.

Sleep apnea

One of the latest studies, the results of which were published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, suggests that sleep apnea is linked to erectile dysfunction.

Sleep apnea – a condition that results in intermittent breathing during the sleep – is the problem that over 12 million Americans face because of fatigues, excess weight and high blood pressure.

The study performed among 320 women and 401 men aged 28-64, some of whom suffered from sleep apnea, revealed that this medical condition significantly increases the risk of libido loss and erectile dysfunction in women and men respectively.

The main reason behind this link is, according to scientists, the effect of the disorder on sleep-dependent chemical reactions that produce testosterone, a hormone partially responsible for libido and ED. The frequent disruptions of sleep might inhibit the body’s ability to produce and process this hormone, which, in its turn, negatively affects the quality of men’s and women’s potency.

Commenting on the findings, Dr. David Gozal of the University of Louisville, one of the authors of the research, said that “even relatively short periods of CIH are associated with significant effects on sexual activity and erectile function.”

Cialis

On Friday, October 7th, Eli Lilly, the manufacturer of Cialis, the #1 erectile dysfunction drug, said that the “weekend pill” has been approved for uses other that treatment of impotence.

The US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) issued an approval for the use of Cialis in men suffering from erectile dysfunction, Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) or prostate enlargement, and both, ED and BPH.

The decision of the US FDA is based upon numerous clinical trials, which proved that Cialis in 5 mg dose is suitable for treatment of BPH and ED + BPH. The studies involved almost 2,000 men.

Commenting on the latest news from Eli Lilly and the US FDA, Mr. Roehrborn of the University of Texas SouthWestern Medical Center, said that “a single medication approved to treat both may be a significant therapeutic option for men and physicians since many men who have ED also experience the signs and symptoms of BPH.”

Dave Ricks of Eli Lilly USA, in his turn, said that the new uses of its popular drug Cialis will help “reinforce our [Eli Lilly's] commitment to providing medical innovation in the area of men’s health.”

Prostate cancer and ED

A recent study performed by the Cancer of the Prostate Strategic Urologic Research Endeavor revealed that it is possible to predict the consequences of prostate cancer treatment.

Earlier, patients suffering from prostate cancer were unable to get a picture of what sexual problems they might face after treatment.

Now, scientists have developed models that allow to predict the development of erectile dysfunction after such treatment methods as include prostatectomy, external radiotherapy and brachytherapy.

The study found out that the quality of erections depends not only on the cancer treatment method, but also on the patient’s age, cancer stage and sexual life habits.

Comments to the study suggest that “Erectile dysfunction is a well-recognized consequence of primary prostate cancer treatment. Accurate prediction of this adverse sexual HRQOL outcome is pivotal to set appropriate expectations and facilitate medical decision-making. Our findings address this need by providing a validated, broadly applicable framework to predict the probability of long-term, post treatment erectile dysfunction for individual patients.”

More details about the study can be found in the Journal of the American Medical Association.