What 8 Medical Experts Think About ‘Female Viagra’
Posted on August 18, 2015
Source:
TIME
August 2015 -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) could soon approve a drug that’s been called a “female Viagra”—the first medication to treat a lack of sexual desire among women.
The agency is expected to make a decision on the drug, known as flibanserin, on Tuesday.
The drug, which is supposed to treat hypoactive sexual desire disorder, has already been rejected twice. Medical experts who oppose its approval argue flibanserin’s results are not very encouraging, and that the drug has undesirable side effects like dizziness and sleepiness. However, many individuals and campaign groups in support of the drug have taken a very public and loud stance in the past year, arguing that it’s sexist that there’s no drug for women that treats a lack of sexual desire. In June, an advisory panel to the FDA recommended that the agency approve the drug.
The medical community is remarkably split on whether flibanserin should be approved or not. See what eight medical experts say about the drug, and whether they think it should be approved Tuesday.
“I am very opposed to the drug and have been since it first went to the FDA in 2010 and it was rejected. Then it was rejected a second time. The drug hasn’t changed, the data hasn’t changed, and my opinion hasn’t changed. I think it’s a disaster. It’s unsafe and it doesn’t work. That is all a drug is supposed to do. Work and be safe. The third strike is the illegitimate means by which the company [Sprout Pharmaceuticals] tried to distract the FDA by honing in on this completely erroneous accusation of sexism. The campaign is totally inappropriate.”
—Leonore Tiefer, clinical associate professor of psychiatry at NYU School of Medicine.
“Flibanserin is a game changer for women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder. I see it as one of the top health innovations for the coming year.”
—Dr. Holly Thacker, women’s health specialist at Cleveland Clinic.
Read original article on Time.com.