2023-09-28 08:05:00
The men reported, quite happily, that the drug gave them more frequent and longer erections.
“That was the breakthrough,” recalls chemist David Brown in an interview regarding the moment when his colleagues did not yet see the potential of the chance discovery. Five years later, on March 27, 1998, the active ingredient sildenafil came onto the market in the USA under the brand name Viagra – accompanied by a brilliant “Time” cover story with the title “The Potency Pill”. Exactly 25 years ago today, on September 28, 1998, Viagra was finally available in Austrian pharmacies.
Since then, the little blue pill has changed the sex lives of numerous men – and women – worldwide: More than 64 million men have swallowed a total of over three billion pills, reports Pfizer. The company made billions in profits.
The “Viagra effect”
Today, experts speak of the “Viagra effect” – because with the advent of the tablet, men dared to talk regarding their problems in bed on a larger scale for the first time. “In the past, men often waited ten to 20 years. Now patients sometimes come to my consultation following just three to six months,” reports urologist Frank Sommer, University Professor of Men’s Health in Hamburg and President of the German Society for Men and Health.
One reason for this: The problem of impotence – for many of those affected with social stigma and the stigma of “inability” – has now become more objectively erectile dysfunction. A medical term that was somehow easier to deal with.
Nevertheless, marketing experts remember that it was a tricky undertaking at the beginning to bring the tablet and its effects into the conversation. Advertisements were initially only allowed to run on US television following 11 p.m. – and when they did, the actors were clearly wearing a wedding ring.
Not very attractive alternatives
But the pill quickly scored points. As the first oral therapy for erectile dysfunction, it offered great advantages. “Before, you had to put an syringe into your penis, which of course very few people wanted to do. You might have surgery on the penis – with penile implants where hydraulics were installed – or you had to use a vacuum pump with rings,” reports Frank Sommer from the less attractive alternatives.
Sildenafil helps around 70 percent of men with acute problems to achieve an erection – but not automatically, but only when the man is aroused. The active ingredient, a so-called PDE-5 inhibitor, blocks an enzyme that prevents vasodilatation and increased blood flow to the penis in the erectile tissue. However, in combination with other medications or for heart patients, it can have dangerous side effects and is therefore still subject to prescription in Austria.
Because there are sometimes completely different physical reasons why men don’t get an erection, specialists believe it makes sense to have it checked out. “Sometimes nerves need to be stimulated or the pelvic floor needs to be built up,” reports Sommer. Permanent healing may also be possible under certain circumstances.
Different consequences, also negative
There are now various competing products with similar PDE-5 inhibitors, as well as a large number of generics – patent protection for Viagra expired in Europe in 2013, and in the USA at the end of 2017. This gave a further boost to products that are not reimbursed by health insurance: while the original costs around 20 euros per tablet, depending on the dosage, the “replica” is available for around five euros.
The blue pill has different consequences. Many men – and couples – enjoy having sex once more following a long lull. A few misunderstandings may also disappear, reports Sommer: For example, if women believe that their husband is withdrawing because he no longer finds them attractive – but he is ashamed of his erectile dysfunction. “It gets easier with the pill.”
But others also experience negative consequences. Some women feel pressured to suddenly have sex once more following years of friendly cuddling. “Both partners have a physiological aging process and the number of sexual activities decreases and perhaps the desire for sex also decreases,” says Sommer.
Could Viagra also help women? According to studies, Sildenafil also affects female genitals. However, there is no admission for women. According to experts, the causes of sexuality disorders in women are also much more complex. “Pink Viagra” (flibanserin), which was brought onto the US market with a big bang in 2015, tried to stimulate this “sex that starts in the head” – with minimal success, but with a lot of side effects.
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