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Viagra gets European go-ahead.October, 1998Pfizer's blockbusting erectile dysfunction drug Viagra has been given marketing approval in all 15 states of the EU by EMEA's centralised process. However, its availability in the UK has been put on hold, as a result of fears that it would have a dramatic effect on the National Health Service's drug budget. The UK Secretary of State for Health Frank Dobson stated, 'Media coverage of this drug to date has created expectations that could prove a serious drain on the funds of the NHS. The potential availability of Viagra raises issues about the priority which should be given to the treatment of impotence on the NHS.' Director general of the ABPI, Dr Trevor Jones said, 'Erectile dysfunction is a serious medical condition, which can lead to depression and psychological problems. I regret the postponement of Viagra in the UK; it is a strange decision from a government that claims to want drug evaluation.' Pfizer estimates that erectile dysfunction affects 10% of men worldwide. Viagra, an oral-dose phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor that improves blood flow to the penis, is already marketed in Switzerland and Andorra, and was launched in the US in April (Manufacturing Chemist, May 1998), where record numbers of prescriptions have been written for it. Copyright 1998 Information Access Company, a Thomson Corporation Company; ASAP Copyright 1998 Miller Freeman plc. (UK) Manufacturing Chemist SECTION: Pg. 9; ISSN: 0262-4230 IAC-ACC-NO: 53229949 LENGTH: 214 words |
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