Drug dysfunction erectile medication daily news.

May 2, 2000 (Atlanta) — One of the major concerns about Viagra is whether
the impotence drug is suitable for patients with heart disease. And those
taking drugs known as nitrates for heart conditions already are warned not to
use the distinctive blue pills. Now another treatment for impotence has been
tested on men suffering with impotence and heart disease, and the results are
encouraging.

At the same time, neurologists in California are finding that Viagra gives
patients with Parkinson’s disease substantial relief from movement
symptoms associated with the brain disorder.

The new drug, Uprima, was studied in nearly 1,500 patients, about 225 of
whom had a history of heart disease, over the course of two months. After
trying various doses of the drug, the researchers found that at the recommended
dose, about one in two attempts at intercourse were likely to be successful.
Those not receiving treatment had successful intercourse in less than one out
of four attempts.

The research, paid for by the TAP Holdings, was presented at a
urology conference here this week.

Uprima is taken by placing it under the tongue and allowing it to be
absorbed into the bloodstream. It was recommended for approval by an advisory
panel to the FDA last month, even though there were concerns about Uprima’s
side effects. About one-third of those taking the drug at a high dose suffered
from nausea or dizziness.

It’s still not clear how Uprima may interact with longer-acting nitrates,
although there is some indication that the combination may lead to fainting or
dangerously low blood pressure. That side effect may have proven lethal to some
nitrate patients who tried Viagra.

However, lead investigator for the new study, Eugene Dula, MD, says Uprima
does appear safer for many heart patients. Dula is medical director of the West
Coast Clinical Research in Van Nuys, Calif.

Dula tells WebMD that Viagra or Uprima should be fine for patients not
taking nitrates but who take one or two drugs for high blood pressure. If they
are on nitrates, especially the short-acting variety, Dula thinks Uprima may be
a good option for these patients. He also says the short-acting nitrates
haven’t caused a profound dip in blood pressure, and that the FDA is taking a
hard look at the longer-acting versions. Other doctors feel that Uprima may be
a useful alternative for patients trying to cope with heart disease and
impotence.

“The nitrate studies are very small with Uprima. There’s about a 10%
incidence of blood pressure changes. They’re not of the magnitude that occur
with Viagra and nitrates, but they are somewhat concerning,” John Mulhall,
MD, assistant professor of urology at Loyola University Medical Center, tells
WebMD.

There also are questions about Uprima’s effectiveness since a relatively
high percentage of those getting placebo treatments also were able to achieve
an erection. “The patients that were entered into the study may not have
had severe sexual dysfunction to start out with,” says Patrick Walsh, MD,
chief of urology at Johns Hopkins Medical in Baltimore.

Uprima is thought to work by stimulating that area of the brain responsible
for causing erections. , it’s also been used to treat Parkinson’s
disease.

Now a new study suggests that Viagra may prove beneficial to people with
Parkinson’s disease. Symptoms of Parkinson’s include shaking, poor balance,
muscle rigidity, and dyskinesia, or abnormal, involuntary muscle movements.

In this study, presented at a neurology conference in San Diego, seven of
nine Parkinson’s patients treated with Viagra experienced a significant
improvement in dyskinesia, with three patients reporting a complete resolution.
The benefits lasted for as long as they remained on the drug and returned when
the drug was discontinued. The patients continued taking their other medicines
while on Viagra and experienced no worsening of their symptoms. Flushing of the
face, reported by one person, was the only side effect, and there was no change
in sexual function.

Neurologist David M. Swope, MD, who conducted the trial, tells WebMD he was
intrigued when one of his patients, a 60-year-old man, said his Parkinson’s
symptoms improved after he started taking Viagra for impotence. Swope theorizes
that the drug’s effects may resemble those of dopamine, a chemical in the brain
and nervous system known to be decreased in Parkinson’s patients. Swope is
assistant professor of neurology at Loma Linda University in Loma Linda,
Calif.

“I was surprised it worked in these patients as well as it did,” he
says. “I ? wasn’t expecting it to be effective in these patients.”
Swope warns that these findings are “very, very preliminary. We need more
evidence that it actually works before it is used routinely.” He is now
designing another study to test the effects of Viagra more carefully. “I
think the role of Viagra has yet to be defined, but potentially this might be
a new approach to treatment.”

Vital :

• A recent study suggests the drug Uprima may safely treat impotence in
  patients who also have heart disease.
• A Uprima researcher says the drug seems safer than Viagra for patients who
  are taking nitrates for their heart conditions. Doctors still don’t know the
  long-term effects of taking Uprima and nitrates together.
• Researchers also are testing how Viagra might help people with Parkinson’s
  disease control some of their movement problems.