Even in the most sexually enlightened and self-satisfied of nations, many people crave to glow more, to feel ready for bedding no matter what the clock says and to desire their partner of 23 years as much as they did when their love was brand new.
The market is flooded with books on how to refresh a fading libido or spice up droning sex, and sex therapists say “lack of desire” is the most common complaints they hear from patients, particularly women.
And though there may be genuine sociological or personal underpinnings to that diminished desire — chronic overburden and stress, a hostile workplace, a slovenly or unsupportive spouse — still the age-old search continues for a simple chemical fix, Cupid encapsulated, a thrill in a pill.
Since the amazing achievement of Viagra and similar drugs, the pharmaceutical industry has been searching for the female equivalent of Viagra — a cure that would do for women’s most common sexual complaint, lack of craving, what sildenafil did for men’s, erectile dysfunction.
Early trials of Viagra in women proved very much unsatisfactory. The drug improved puffiness of vaginal tissue, just as it had of the penis, but that extra bit of pelvic swelling did nothing to increase women’s desire or enjoyment of sex.
Lately, another potentially capable treatment for hypoactive wish has been making its way through clinical trials. The compound, called bremelanotide, is a synthetic version of a hormone involved in skin pigmentation, and it was originally developed by Palatin Technologies of New Jersey as a probable tanning agent to help prevent skin cancer. But when male college students participating in early safety tests began reporting that the drug sometimes gave them erections, the company began exploring bremelanotide’s utility as a treatment for sexual disorders.
Studies in rodents verified that the drug not only gave male rats unprompted erections, but also fomented sexual excitement in female rats, prompting them to wiggle their ears, hop excitedly, rub noses with males and otherwise display instantly recognizable hallmarks of rodent arousal.
Importantly, the females responded to the drug only under laboratory conditions where they could maintain a sense of control over the mating game. Take away the female’s opportunity to escape or proceed at her preferred pace, and no amount of bremelanotide would get those ears to wiggle.
Inspired by the rodent, the company decided to give the drug a whirl on women. Results from a pilot study of 26 postmenopausal women with diagnoses of sexual arousal disorder suggest that bremelanotide may well have some mild aphrodisiacal properties.
Responding to questionnaires after taking either the drug or a dummy pill, 73 percent of the women on bremelanotide reported feeling genitally aroused, compared with 23 percent given the placebo; and 43 percent of the bremelanotide group said the treatment augmented their sexual desire, against only 19 percent of those on dummy pills.
Bigger trials of the drug at some 20 clinical centers around the United States are now under way. Among other things, the researchers will try adjusting the dosage to see if more bremelanotide may provoke a more robust response with a minimum of unlikable or embarrassing side effects.
Until now researchers are unsure whether continued use of bremelanotide will end up doing what the drug was meant to do in the first place, and bestow on its beaming clients a truly healthy tan.
The market is flooded with books on how to refresh a fading libido or spice up droning sex, and sex therapists say “lack of desire” is the most common complaints they hear from patients, particularly women.
And though there may be genuine sociological or personal underpinnings to that diminished desire — chronic overburden and stress, a hostile workplace, a slovenly or unsupportive spouse — still the age-old search continues for a simple chemical fix, Cupid encapsulated, a thrill in a pill.
Since the amazing achievement of Viagra and similar drugs, the pharmaceutical industry has been searching for the female equivalent of Viagra — a cure that would do for women’s most common sexual complaint, lack of craving, what sildenafil did for men’s, erectile dysfunction.
Early trials of Viagra in women proved very much unsatisfactory. The drug improved puffiness of vaginal tissue, just as it had of the penis, but that extra bit of pelvic swelling did nothing to increase women’s desire or enjoyment of sex.
Lately, another potentially capable treatment for hypoactive wish has been making its way through clinical trials. The compound, called bremelanotide, is a synthetic version of a hormone involved in skin pigmentation, and it was originally developed by Palatin Technologies of New Jersey as a probable tanning agent to help prevent skin cancer. But when male college students participating in early safety tests began reporting that the drug sometimes gave them erections, the company began exploring bremelanotide’s utility as a treatment for sexual disorders.
Studies in rodents verified that the drug not only gave male rats unprompted erections, but also fomented sexual excitement in female rats, prompting them to wiggle their ears, hop excitedly, rub noses with males and otherwise display instantly recognizable hallmarks of rodent arousal.
Importantly, the females responded to the drug only under laboratory conditions where they could maintain a sense of control over the mating game. Take away the female’s opportunity to escape or proceed at her preferred pace, and no amount of bremelanotide would get those ears to wiggle.
Inspired by the rodent, the company decided to give the drug a whirl on women. Results from a pilot study of 26 postmenopausal women with diagnoses of sexual arousal disorder suggest that bremelanotide may well have some mild aphrodisiacal properties.
Responding to questionnaires after taking either the drug or a dummy pill, 73 percent of the women on bremelanotide reported feeling genitally aroused, compared with 23 percent given the placebo; and 43 percent of the bremelanotide group said the treatment augmented their sexual desire, against only 19 percent of those on dummy pills.
Bigger trials of the drug at some 20 clinical centers around the United States are now under way. Among other things, the researchers will try adjusting the dosage to see if more bremelanotide may provoke a more robust response with a minimum of unlikable or embarrassing side effects.
Until now researchers are unsure whether continued use of bremelanotide will end up doing what the drug was meant to do in the first place, and bestow on its beaming clients a truly healthy tan.
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