Sildenafil(1) Promising for Sex Problems in Women

Sexual dysfunction is estimated to occur in 30 percent to 70 percent of men and women medicines for the treatment of depression. In women symptoms of sexual problems includes orgasm delay or lack of arousal (lubrication) and, like for men, these can result in failure to take medication according to schedule or early discontinuation of antidepressant treatment.

To study the effectiveness of sildenafil on women taking serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI²) antidepressants, H George Nurnberg et al³ conducted an 8-week clinical trial (prospective, parallel-group, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled) on 98 patients who were experiencing these adverse sexual effects.

The average age of the participants was 37; forty-nine were randomly assigned to take sildenafil or placebo⁴ at a flexible dose starting at 50 mg adjustable to 100 mg before anticipated sexual activity.

Compared with placebo, women randomized to sildenafil reported significant reduction in sexual dysfunction symptoms such as delayed orgasm and inadequate lubrication.

Women experience major depressive disorder at nearly double the rate of men and they experience greater resulting sexual dysfunction than men.

“By treating this bothersome treatment-associated adverse effect in patients who have been effectively treated for depression, but need to continue on their medication to avoid relapse or recurrence, patients can remain antidepressant-adherent, reduce the current high rates of premature medication discontinuation, and improve depression disease management outcomes,” the authors write.

1. Sildenafil is the generic name for Viagra, a selective phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor for the treatment of sexual dysfunction.

2. Luvox, Prozac, Seroxat, and Zoloft are brands of serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI) antidepressants but are not necessarily associated with this trial.

3. H. George Nurnberg; Paula L. Hensley; Julia R. Heiman; Harry A. Croft; Charles Debattista; Susan Paine. Sildenafil Treatment of Women With Antidepressant-Associated Sexual Dysfunction : A Randomized Controlled Trial. JAMA. 2008;300(4):395-404.

4. Placebo is an inactive substance or preparation used as a control in an experiment or test to determine the effectiveness of a medicinal drug.

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