Viagra News and Research: Viagra No Longer Only A Sex Pill

Viagra known as a sex pill to treat erectile dysfunction, but in last few years its usage has been increased. According to one study, Viagra can play a significant role in pulmonary hypertension.

Viagra: Role in Pulmonary Hypertension

Pulmonary hypertension is a fatal disorder since the strain of pumping blood through narrowed vessels can result in the failure of the heart muscle. When the heart muscle is not able to perform, the lungs cannot supply enough oxygen to satisfy the body's requirements. Diagnosis for this sort of disorder widens the damaged blood vessels in the lung and makes it harder for the heart to pump blood through the lungs.

Viagra relaxes the arterial wall, which leads to decreased pulmonary arterial resistance and pressure. Decreased pulmonary arterial resistance minimizes the workload of the right ventricle of the heart and in general improves symptoms of right sided heart failure. According to one study, high dose Viagra followed by inhaled iloprost is the most effective routine for pulmonary hypertension. The next most effective routine was low dose Viagra in addition to inhaled iloprost.

Revatio an alternative form of sildenafil

PDE 5 is basically distributed within the periphery of arterial wall and smooth muscle of the lungs. Viagra acts selectively in both these locations without inducing vasodilatation in other portions of the body. The maker of Viagra, Pfizer, submitted an additional application for registration of sildenafil to the FDA, and sildenafil was approved in June 2005. The preparation is known as Revatio, to alleviate confusion with Viagra. Apart from that the 20 milligram tablets are white and round.

Raynaud's Phenomenon

In 2005, Dr. Roland Fries and his research team reported that sildenafil reduces the frequency of Raynaud's phenomenon attacks, minimize their duration by approximately one half, and most importantly more than quadrupled the mean capillary blood velocity. This was a double blind, placebo controlled crossover trial.

Other Uses

Researchers have pinpointed the fact that Viagra can play a significant role in thickening the lining of the womb in women suffering from fertility issues and can also minimize the risk of pre-eclampsia.

Viagra can be very beneficial for premature babies with breathing difficulties.  Although doctors have an option of inserting oxygen into their lungs to assist them, there is not enough blood to supply a number of areas of the lungs’ ability to take oxygen around the rest of the body. What Viagra does is open up the blood vessels, which help in capturing and circulating the oxygen around the whole body.