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Pills to treat impotence not aphrodisiacs
January 30, 2004
A Barbadian urologist is warning Barbadian
men not to view medical products aimed at treating
erectile dysfunction
as “magic bullets” that will immediately
enhance their sexual performance.
While addressing a number of doctors and pharmacists
at a function held at the Accra Beach Hotel,
Dr. Jerry Emtage said one of the errors made
when Viagra was introduced a few years ago was
that it was marketed as a “Saturday Night
Special” to improve men’s
sexual stamina. As a result, men of all
ages, including younger men who had never had
problems with erectile dysfunction had begun
using the product and because it was ineffective
as an aphrodisiac, they dismissed it as useless
and sales began to drop. Emtage said following
this, the distributors had to venture into the
media and provide a full explanation of the
circumstances under which the pill should be
used. He reminded the audience that erectile
dysfunction was a medi- cal condition caused
by various factors, and products such as Viagra
were aimed at treating it and should only be
taken when doctors recommended them.
Emtage made his comments at the launch of a
new similar product named Cialis, which has
several advantages over Viagra. During the launch,
Dr. Sean Chang, a medical representative with
the manufacturers, Eli Lilly and Company, outlined
the results of a 12-week study carried out in
the United States prior to the introduction
of the drug. Chang noted that the study was
carried out on a group of over 1 000 men between
the ages of 56 and 58, some of whom were treated
with ten milligram doses of the drug and others
with 20 milligrams.
The studies noted improvements in erectile
function in between 45 and 60 per cent of the
men who took the drug. They also showed that
the drug became active in the men surveyed half
an hour after they took it and remained effective
for up to 36 hours, unlike Viagra, which became
active in an hour and only remained effective
for four hours. Separate tests were carried
out on patients with diabetes and hypertension,
and the results were similar to those experienced
by patients that did not suffer from these
conditions.
In terms of side
effects, Chang noted that headaches were
the most commonly reported problem the study
group faced. However, this affected only about
two per cent of the members of the study group
and there were even fewer instances where the
headaches were so severe that patients had to
discontinue using Cialis.
He added that Cialis was not recommended for
patients taking nitrates to treat chest pains
resulting from angina, since it could cause
a significant drop in their blood pressure.
The same applied to patients using “alpha
blockers” to treat prostate problems or
high blood pressure. Men were also reminded
to take Cialis as their doctors prescribed and
told that it was not necessary to take the pill
more than once a day or to take one every day.
source:-http://www.barbadosadvocate.com
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