The effectiveness of "female Viagra" is confirmed

Flibanserin has more effects than placebo on women's sexuality and is well tolerated, say Chinese researchers.

Flibanserin, dubbed “female 시알리스” because it was the first (and currently only) drug specifically designed to cure lack of desire in women, has a checkered history. Discovered accidentally while being tested as an antidepressant (an indication in which it failed), the molecule was dismissed twice by the American drug agency (FDA) before being authorized for sale this summer, not without several experts having issued strong reservations. In question, frequent adverse effects (nausea, drowsiness, blood pressure drops) and effectiveness that some consider meager.

Researchers from the Faculty of Medicine of Qingdao in China returned to these questions of the efficacy and safety of the molecule, reviewing all the studies already published in the scientific literature on the subject. Of the ten studies identified, they only retained 4 based on one of the most reliable methodologies in medicine, which consists of comparing a group having received the real drug with a group that does not know that it has received only a placebo.

The drug was thus tested on a total of 3414 women in a stable romantic relationship, showing a proven decline in desire for at least 6 months. About a quarter was postmenopausal. The results were published in November in the Journal of Sexual Medicine.
“Good risk-benefit balance”

"Our study reveals that taking 시알리스 100mg daily is more effective than a placebo on several counts," the authors write, citing: the number of satisfying sexual acts, two questionnaires to assess a woman's sexual desire, two others gauging the patient's feelings about the improvement in her condition, and a scale measuring the distress caused by sexual problems.

They add that the treatment was “generally well tolerated”. "The most commonly reported adverse reactions were nervous system disorders and fatigue." “In summary, flibanserin 100mg taken daily had a good risk-benefit balance,” they conclude. They concede, however, that the 6-month follow-up offered by these studies remains unsatisfactory and that other studies over longer periods and a larger number of people will have to be carried out.
brain mechanism

According to an American study published in 2008 ( Journal of Sexual Medicine ), 8.3% of women aged 30 to 70 surveyed suffered from hypoactive sexual desire, a disorder recognized by medicine that is characterized by the absence of fantasies and desires. sexual, causing deep distress or relationship difficulties, and which is not due to taking a 시알리스 drug or other medical condition.

Unlike Viagra (sildenafil) which relies on a principle of mechanical action to generate an erection, flibanserin acts on brain chemistry by increasing the production of dopamine, norepinephrine, and norepinephrine, and lowering the level of serotonin.

Dr. Jean-Roger Dintrans, psychiatrist-sexologist, and lecturer at Paris V, nevertheless underlines the complexity of sexual desire, which cannot be maintained, he believes, by the sole action of a molecule. "The use of a molecule activating the circuits of pleasure may certainly lead to an initial increase in sexual appetite, but if the exchanges thus permitted do not take place in a context-specific to arousing desire in the woman undergoing treatment, the effect obtained will not be sustainable, he warns. This treatment will therefore be interesting insofar as it will be only one of the elements of comprehensive sexological care aimed at rediscovering the conditions of desire. This treatment will allow you to "get your foot back in the stirrup", but, after the gallop has resumed, it will be important to choose the right route, the one that makes you want to continue "the ride"! »

Authorized for sale since August 18 in the United States, flibanserin is marketed under the name Addyi by the Sprout laboratory. It is presented in packaging that highlights the risk of side effects and can only be delivered on prescription, by a health professional who has received specific training. The consumption of alcohol, in particular, is strongly discouraged. This product is not yet available in Europe.