First Female Viagra May Soon Be Available as a Nasal Spray
Pharmaceutical companies have been racing to produce the first ever female Viagra since the erectile dysfunction drug hit the market 14 years ago, and now it seems that it has final finally arrived in a the form of a nasal spray.
While the female sex-enhancing nasal spray, known as Tefina, still needs to go through clinical trails before it can be made available to the public, researchers at Monash University in Australia say that the spray can boost the sex drive of one in three women.
Tefina is a testosterone gel that is sprayed up the nose. Researchers say that the testosterone is then absorbed within minutes and will become effective two hours after it is administered for up to six hours.
Researchers said the drug will be taken in the context of sexual activity, but will produce no adverse androgen-related side effects like bad skin, body or facial hair or a deepened voice.
Researchers say that Tefina will be used as needed and that the drug will be used with the intention that it will increase the occurrence of orgasm for pre-menopausal women with sexual dysfunction or anorgasmia.
"We anticipate the treatment will work like Viagra for women. Rather than a long-term, therapy-based approach, this drug can be taken when a woman anticipates sexual activity," Lead researcher Professor Susan Davis of the Women's Health Group said in a statement.
"We have previously shown that for women with low sexual interest, testosterone therapy not only improves sexual desire and arousal, but also enhances a woman's ability to reach orgasm," she added.
Lead researcher Professor Susan Davis of the Women's Health Group says that up to a third of women are affected by life-long problem or acquired anorgasmia, a medical term for regular difficulty achieving orgasm after ample sexual stimulation, and despite one-third of women being affected, researchers say that the only available treatments are psychotherapy and sex therapy.
Davis said that the new drug would be most helpful for patients who say that sex has become a chore rather than a pleasurable experience.
"Through previous research, we have shown that women under 50, who are not experiencing sexual pleasure will still participate in sexual activity on average five times per month, primarily to maintain relationship harmony," Davis said.
"Further, we have shown that women who report poor sexual functioning have lower wellbeing, despite not being depressed. Doctors have little to offer women who are experiencing anorgasmia, and this could be a breakthrough study for women who currently are frustrated by the lack of any treatment option," she added.
Clinical trials are taking place in the US and Canada and researchers are currently recruiting participants between the ages of 18 and 49 who experience anorgasmia take part in clinical trials in Australia.