More men turning to Viagra for self-esteem

DUBAI - Increasing number of men in the Middle East are turning to Viagra to increase their self-esteem, says Pfizer’s Dr Mohamed Khalifa.

By A Staff Reporter

Published: Wed 3 May 2006, 11:18 AM

Last updated: Tue 20 Jun 2023, 2:29 PM

But in a recently published medical review, a London-based cardiologist argues that Pfizer’s Viagra pill, once thought only to be the saviour of impotent men, may soon be more heavily associated with the treatment of cardiovascular disease, he noted.

Dr Khalifa says, “We are pleased to learn from Dr Graham Jackson of London’s Guys and St. Thomas Hospital study that the drug has new potential indications for use in the area of cardiology.”

Currently, Viagra is indicated to treat erectile dysfunction and has US FDA-approval for the treatment of limited pulmonary arterial hypertension, a condition which causes sufferers to experience shortness of breath as if they were at high altitude.

“Multiple pre-clinical and clinical investigations are underway, and recently a close association between erectile dysfunction and endothelial dysfunction has been established, and it is becoming apparent that erectile dysfunction may be an outward marker of many underlying cardiovascular conditions,” says Dr Jackson. “Although not very effective for angina, sildenafil (Viagra) has subsequently been shown to improve endothelial function in blood vessels in conditions such as diabetes, and early pre-clinical studies suggest promise as a potential target for heart attack and stroke injury.”

But with more than 750,000 physicians worldwide prescribing Viagra to more than 27 million men over the last seven years, and with the total number of global cases of erectile dysfunction estimated to top 300 million by the year 2025, there are no signs that the ‘little blue pill’ is likely to lose its position as the world’s top selling erectile dysfunction therapy.