Female Viagra patch to boost women’s libido!

London, March 26: Viagra, the anti-impotence drug that has so far helped men who have lost their sex drive, will become available for women on the NHS (National Health Service) from this week.

Intrinsa- the female Viagra – is now all set to change the sex lives of women.

The drug will initially only be obtainable on prescription for post-menopausal women diagnosed with sexual problems.

But, it is possible that the patches will later transform into over the counter drugs, for use by younger women without sexual problems, but who still want to boost their libido, reports the Daily Mail.

The new treatment for women works by letting loose the male hormone testosterone through the skin into the bloodstream.

The patch, which is about the size of an egg, is put on just below the navel and changed twice every week.

Manufacturers Procter and Gamble said that the patch helped boost libido in hundreds of women in trials, and increased the amount of sexual activity they experienced.

Successful results were also found in menopausal women, who had been diagnosed with hypoactive sexual desire disorder, a condition where sexual activity is reduced - leading to psychological distress.

Other tests showed that it worked on women suffering loss of libido after a hysterectomy.

The Intrinsa patches worked by increasing the level of testosterone in the blood. Though it is recognized as the male sex hormone, it is naturally occurring in women too, secreted by the ovaries and the adrenal gland.

According to experts, the therapy would benefit women having a hysterectomy and others having a premature menopause before the age of 50.

Makers went for a patch system rather than a pill, which would have led to too high a dose, to avoid the unfavourable effects of testosterone, which could cause excessive body hair and liver disorders.

Unlike Viagra, the patch does not work immediately; it takes weeks to have an effect.

Intrinsa works on a completely different principle to Viagra because women's sex problems are down to social, phsychological and emotional factor, dissimilar to men’s difficulties that is physical.

Procter and Gamble said that the patches would help women with Female Sexual Dysfunction (FSD).

Some campaigners consider FSD as a syndrome created by the pharmaceutical industry to make the treatment of a social issue benefit their trade.

However, many doctors believe that one medicine cannot treat four different conditions problems like desire, arousal, achieving orgasm and genital pain.

Bureau Report with ANI inputs

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