US research: Viagra can help relieve menstrual cramps

According to a pharmaceutical expert, women in Israel can be prescribed Viagra for menstrual cramps.

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
viagra 298 (photo credit: )
viagra 298
(photo credit: )
Viagra (sildenfil citrate) is apparently not just for men – but not in the way you think. New research on the Pfizer drug commonly prescribed for male erectile dysfunction, published in the journal Human Reproduction, shows that when used as a vaginal suppository, it can relieve serious menstrual cramps.
The small American study, which was financed by the US Department of Health and Human Services, included 25 women aged 18 to 35 suffering from menstrual pain (primary dismenorrhea). The women were given 100 mg. of sildenafil or a placebo as a suppository and asked to rate the amount of pain they had during the next four hours. Women who vaginally inserted the blue pill reported significant relief of their menstrual cramps, as much as twice the alleviation of pain as women in the control group.
Put on the market for men in 1998, more than 230 million prescriptions have since been given to some 35 million men around the world. Every second, six Viagra pills are sold, according to Pfizer.
The drug works in men by expanding the blood vessels and increasing blood flow to the genitals.
According to a pharmaceutical expert, women in Israel can be prescribed Viagra for menstrual cramps, even though this problem is not a clinical indication for use of the drug. Every time it is prescribed, the female patient’s doctor has to fill out a special form to send to the Health Ministry for unconventional use of a drug. Viagra is not included in the basket of health services, so it is not paid for by one’s health fund.
The price of Viagra pills has gone down considerably as patent protection is withdrawn.
It now costs around NIS 27 per pill.