Erectile Dysfunction is a strong reality

The pharmaceutical industry was stunned by a set of essays published in the open-access journal Public Library of Science Medicine virtually accusing it of creating disease conditions such as restless legs syndrome, female sexual dysfunction, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and erectile dysfunction.

All these are conditions according to the issue edited by David Henry, of Newcastle University in Australia, and Ray Moynihan, an Australian journalist are practically non-existent and do not require any treatment. According to Ray, pharmaceutical companies are systematically creating diseases in order to sell more of their products, turning healthy people into patients and placing many at risk of harm. He has gone on to accuse the industry of "disease mongering" for promoting non-existent illnesses or exaggerating minor ones.

According to the authors "Disease-mongering turns healthy people into patients, wastes precious resources and causes medically induced harm," they say. "Like the marketing strategies that drive it, disease-mongering poses a global challenge to those interested in public health, demanding in turn a global response."

Ordinary shyness is routinely presented as a social anxiety disorder and treated with antidepressants, while newly identified conditions such as "restless legs syndrome" — a constant urge to move one’s legs — are presented as being much more common than they really are, according to the issue.

Particular conditions that are highlighted in the journal include sexual function in both men and women. The prevalence of female sexual dysfunction, according to one article, has been highly exaggerated to provide a new market for drugs, while the makers of anti-impotence medicines have been involved with their presentation as lifestyle drugs that can boost the sexual prowess of healthy men. They go on to dismiss erectile dysfunction as a condition that has been over hyped.

Clearly these accusations have absolutely no basis and are the at best the work of a creative imagination with little knowledge of sexual health of either sex.

The authors of the article did not take into account an important demographic factor, when they dismissed erectile dysfunction as irrelevant - 180 million men all over the world suffer from Erectile Dysfunction. Hardly 5% of these men see a doctor for erectile dysfunction. The constant flow of patient education programmes and advertisements about erectile dysfunction have increased the percentage of men who now see a doctor for erectile dysfunction. Today this condition is not considered as a sign of incomplete manhood, but a genuine disorder that is treatable. All this could only be possible because of the generous support from the pharmaceutical industry.

In fact the U.S. government’s decision to allow direct to customer advertising is only to increase further patient awareness. This has spawned a number of online pharmacies. In the case of erectile dysfunction most patients are reluctant to even discuss this condition with their spouse. Here the role of an online generic Viagra pharmacy makes the difference.

Not only can a man discreetly order generic Viagra online, but also be assured of privacy in delivery. This coupled with the convenience of ordering from home and the lower prices makes this a worthwhile experience. Men can choose from a number of good quality brands of generic Viagra such a Kamagra, Edegra and Penegra. Most men are not just buying small amounts of these drugs, but are buying monthly or bimonthly quantities. There is no doubt that erectile dysfunction is a strong reality and misuse of these drugs by non-patients is not only discouraged by industry, but also highly condoned.

After all this to accuse the pharmaceutical industry of disease mongering is only to remain blind to the benefits of increased awareness of diseases and to forget the big picture. The British Pharmaceutical Industry has lambasted these accusations as irresponsible. According to them the drug industry provides information on treatments out there that might help certain conditions, but at the end of the day it is down to health professionals to decide if they are appropriate.