China eases restrictions of Viagra
( 2002-02-07 11:59 ) (1 )

Patients suffering from male erectile dysfunction (ED) now have more ways to get Viagra, thanks to the relaxation of restrictions on doctors.

The Ministry of Health and the State Drug Administration jointly issued a document that lets chief physicians in the departments of cardiovascular, endocrine, psychosurgery and internal medicine for neuropathy in at least second-class hospitals issue prescriptions for Viagra.

Previously only senior physicians in urology were authorized to give out the US Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Group drug that has aroused heated discussions on treatment of ED worldwide.

Viagra, the trade name of Sildenafil, entered China's market in July 2000, and got patent approval last September.

Pfizer has a pharmaceutical factory in Dalian in Northeast China's Liaoning Province.

The drug is one of the most widely prescribed medications in the world, having been sold in 112 countries and regions.

More than 45 million prescriptions for this drug have been written by 50,000 physicians for more than 16 million men, the company claims.

More Chinese can benefit now that more reporters are writing about ED and more physicians are able to treat ED, said a chief physician in urology at the First Hospital Attached to Peking University.

Sometimes ED patients are too shy and unwilling to see doctors, but they should because the problem could be caused by a nervous system or cardiovascular disease, the doctor said.

"The more patients get to know about ED, the more efficient and accurate we can be in making a diagnosis and giving treatment," he said.

Viagra is a prescribed medicine, which means patients can get it only from hospitals, the doctor said.

"All medicine with the name 'Viagra' for sale in drugstores are fake," he said. "So patients must be very careful because those drugs can have serious side effects."

According to Pfizer, last year's fourth-quarter revenues totalled US$9 billion worldwide, an increase of 12 per cent (14 per cent excluding the impact of foreign exchange) compared with the fourth quarter of 2000.

Net income in the quarter increased 38 per cent to US$1.9 billion and the full-year net income grew 28 per cent to US$8.3 billion.

In addition, Pfizer reaffirmed expectations for double-digit annual revenue growth worldwide between 2002 and 2004.