Impotence treatments are, in a sense, nothing new – they have been around at least as long there have been medical texts to testify about their existence. Yet, their effectiveness is a completely different story altogether. Throughout much of history, ED treatments were found in the shape of herbal remedies, spells and magic amulets, so one can say their effectiveness was… Questionable, to say the least.
Once medicine progressed enough to recognize that supernatural forces don’t have much interest in ordinary man’s erectile dysfunction, medical experts of the time turned to other causes. But, even then, the root cause of ED problems was assumed to be rooted in psychological issues, not physiology. It sounds odd from this perspective, but it was only in the late 1980s and early 1990s that scientists actually got interested in searching for physiological causes of impotence. This was foundation from which Viagra emerged.
What’s on this page?
The discovery of Viagra
The story of Viagra, at least in a stricter sense, starts in the 1990s in the picturesque little town of Sandwich, Kent, in a Pfizer’s research facility that was determined to develop a new pharmaceutical compound that could treat hypertension and angina pectoris, while preventing blood clots.
Once a safe and seemingly suitable substance named sildenafil (originally, compound UK/92,480) was discovered, Ian Osterloh, a British clinical researcher employed at Pfizer decided to begin the first phase of clinical trials in Morriston Hospital in Swansea, Wales. At first, the results were discouraging since effects sildenafil had on angina were negligible. However, then the researchers noticed an interesting side effect.
Once the properties of sildenafil, now well-known, were first discovered, Pfizer decided to change the aim of the research (process called drug repositioning) and focus on ED instead of cardiovascular diseases. In 1996, Viagra was patented by a team of scientists who were involved in the discovery of sildenafil, namely, Andrew Bell, David Brown and Nicholas Terrett.1 By the end of 1998, the medicine was approved by both the EMA and FDA, making Viagra the first orally administered impotence treatment available throughout both European Union and the United States. Today, Viagra can be obtained with a prescription in more than 120 countries, with the annual sales peaking in 2008 at almost two billion dollars.2
Impact of Viagra
Widely known as “the little blue pill”, Viagra has become one of the most famous drugs in the world. By patenting sildenafil, , Pfizer created not only the best-sold impotence pill to date, but also a true icon of popular culture of the 21st century. Viagra has not only changed everything for men affected by erectile dysfunction, giving them an opportunity to enjoy a normal sex life, but has also captivated the popular imagination, appearing in countless movies and TV shows, becoming a kind of common knowledge for the ordinary man.
ED treatment before Viagra
Prior to 1960s, when the first attempts at impotence treatment aimed at physical causes were made, erectile dysfunction was simply a fact of life, and something that was related purely to aging process and couldn’t be remedied – which is to say that men struggling with ED couldn’t do anything but accept the loss of their sex life.
After first ED treatments were introduced, things were slightly better, with slightly being the keyword here. Most of the early treatments were moderately effective – at best. And the routes of administration were incomparable to Viagra! A huge majority of the medicines were administered with a special syringe, directly into the penis. At that time, a simple pill that can solve that issue was nothing short of science fiction.
So, it’s easy to see how Viagra changed everything once it hit the markets!
How does Viagra work?
As mentioned near the beginning of the text, the discovery of Viagra would probably be impossible if it weren’t for research into the physiological causes of ED. For most men, impotence is caused by stiffness of the blood vessels, which in turn makes blood flow in the penis insufficient to cause and maintain an erection. Viagra addresses this problem by relying on its active ingredient – sildenafil classified as PDE-5 inhibitor. And this is the reason why Viagra can do its magic the way it does.
What are PDE-5 inhibitors?
PDE-5 inhibitors are, as the name implies, pharmaceutical compounds that inhibit the action of PDE-5 enzyme. Ok, that was answering to a question with a question, right. So, let’s start from the beginning.
PDE-5 stands for phosphodiesterase enzyme type 5, a type of enzyme that exists naturally in the human body. In men, it serves an important function of driving the blood away from the penis after ejaculation in order to end the erection and return the penis to the flaccid state, thus preventing potential damage or pain. However, men affected by erectile dysfunction usually have higher amounts of PDE 5 than healthy men, which means blood gets away from the penis prematurely, thus making maintaining an erection almost impossible.
Other major causes of ED are narrowed blood vessels within the penis – this can be the result of genetic predisposition, lifestyle choices (such as smoking) or different medical conditions (diabetes or atherosclerosis, to name a few). If this is the case, then blood vessels can’t expand enough in order to allow sufficient blood flow within the penis and, subsequently, onset of a long-lasting erection.
The action of PDE-5 enzymes is in turn based on the degrading effect they have on another important compound involved in the biophysical processes causing an erection, namely cyclic guanosine monophosphate (or cGMP for short).
Luckily, Viagra solves both of these problems at once! On one side, it prevents PDE-5 enzymes from degrading cGMP molecules, and on the other, it relaxes the smooth muscle tissue lining the blood vessels, thus helping them to expand. In either case, the result is a strong and long-lasting erection, necessary for a satisfying intercourse.
Are there any Viagra alternatives?
While Viagra remains at the forefront of ED treatments for the 21st century, Pfizer has got some serious competition along the way! But, first, let’s sort the basics. The very name of the Pfizer’s brand, Viagra, has become so popular and synonymous with effective ED treatment in the contemporary pop culture that many decided to misuse that fact. So, you can find many of the so-called “herbal Viagra” medicines or other alternatives which are marketed as some kind of Viagra analogue. As of now, not one of those treatments has been clinically tested, let alone confirmed to be effective, so our advice to you is to stay clear of shady alternatives.
On the other side, the discovery of sildenafil was also the discovery of PDE-5 inhibitors in general, so there are other medicines which are based on active compounds other than sildenafil, but belonging to the same class. The most efficient and popular ones include Cialis, Levitra and Spedra which all appeared on the markets in the 2000s.
What happened when Viagra patent expired?
In 2013, the patent expired on Viagra, making it legal for other pharmaceutical companies to manufacture the generic version. Naturally, the generic Viagra, marketed simply as sildenafil stormed the markets and achieved great success. Should you use it? Well, it’s up to you. All we can say is that since the patent expired and there are no legal issues, generic Viagra (sildenafil) contains the same active ingredient in the same dosage as Viagra, so for all intents and purposes, it’s the same product.
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