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Young men flock to take Viagra - study
Viagra is not just for old men. The blockbuster impotence pill is being used by a growing number of younger men under the age of 55, prescription drug tracking firm Express Scripts reported on Thursday.
The study of more than 5 million insured adults from 1998 to 2002 found the fastest-growing segments of users was men aged 18 to 55 years.
The number of men under 45 using the drug tripled during this time, the company reported in the International Journal of Impotence Research.
And fewer of these men are using Viagra because they need to for some medical reason. "These findings suggest increased use of Viagra as an enhancement or recreational agent," the company said in a statement.
However, most users are over 56.
The drug, known generically as sildenafil, acts by increasing blood flow. It can help men made impotent by diabetes, heart disease and other conditions.
Its use increased from 0.8 percent of the population surveyed in 1998 to 1.4 percent in 2002, a rise of 84 percent.
This could be bad news for insurers, Express Scripts said.
Viagra generated sales of $1.9 billion in 2003.
"Already concerned with the impact Viagra has had on their pharmacy budgets, health plan sponsors now face the prospect of increased use among a younger, healthier generation of patients," said Tom Delate, who led the study.
"In addition, marketing approval of other erectile dysfunction drugs, such as Levitra and Cialis, will likely increase utilization of such drugs."
Levitra is sold by GlaxoSmithKline Plc and Bayer AG while Cialis is sold by Eli Lilly & Company and Icos Corp..
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