CNN

CNN REPORTS

Television viewers around the world have come to depend on CNN as an inovative news source. As you see, CNN was reporting on women's sexual dysfunction and dissatisfaction in mid-1998.

Of course...that was in response to women's demands for a solution of their own...after Pfizer introduced its famous little blue pill for men!

Stories

February 9, 1999:
Sexual dysfunction is widespread in U.S.,study says
November 4, 1998:
Viagra for women, more and more are turning to the impotence drug
June 26, 1998:
Women looking for their own version of Viagra
September 28, 1998:
Sex after 60: You betcha, survey says

Sexual dysfunction is widespread in U.S., study says

February 9, 1999
Web posted at: 9:40 p.m. EST (0240 GMT)

http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9902/09/sexual.dysfunction/

CHICAGO (CNN) -- Thirty-one percent of men and 43 percent of women regularly suffer from some form of sexual dysfunction,warranting recognition as a significant public health concern, according to a new comprehensive U.S. sex study.

"I think it gives us a base for explaining whywe had this enormous response to Viagra," said the study's lead author, University of Chicago sociologist Edward Laumann.

Researchers are calling the findings the first of their kind since a 1948 report by Dr. Alfred Kinsey on human sexual behavior.

The study, published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, was based on data from the 1992 National Health and Social Life Survey, a collection of interviews with 1,749 women and 1,410 men aged 18 to 59.

Information from the national probability sample concerning sex was reviewed in the wake of Viagra's popularity in treating male impotence since it was put on the market last year.

Survey participants were asked if they had experienced sexual dysfunction over several months during the previous year, including lack of sexual desire, difficulty becoming aroused, inability to climax or ejaculate, premature orgasms, pain during sex, anxiety over sexual performance and not finding sex pleasurable.

Lack of interest in sex was the top problem for women. A third said they regularly didn't want sex, 26 percent said they regularly didn't have orgasms and 23 percent said sex was not pleasurable.

For men, about one-third said they had reoccurring problems with climaxing too early, 14 percent said they had no interest in sex and 8 percent said they regularly experienced no pleasure from sex.

In all, 43 percent of women and 31 percent of men said they had one or more reoccurring problems with sex. Sexual problems were most common among young women and older men.

In both women and men, sexual dysfunction was related to emotional and stress problems including poor health, poor quality of life and prior traumatic sexual experiences.

Researchers, who were surprised by the findings, said the study offers hope and comfort for those with sexual problems.

"Often they don't even admit it to their partners. It's the old 'I've got a headache' instead of, 'I don't feel like having sex,'" Laumann said.

Viagra for women, more and more are turning to the impotence drug

November 4, 1998
Web posted at: 3:26 p.m. EST (2026 GMT)
From Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen

http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9811/04/viagra.women/index.html

ATLANTA (CNN) -- The popular impotence drug for men, Viagra, has been on the market for seven months. But now, thousands of women with sexual problems are also taking the little blue pill.

According the Pfizer, the drug's manufacturer, Viagra has been prescribed for some 150,000 women.

They include Joanne Dorman who had a hysterectomy eight years ago, an operation that some doctors say can lead to a decreased interest in sex.

"It was more of a job or a task, not a pleasurable event," she said.

But after taking Viagra, she says sex with her husband is a lot better.

"It's fabulous, it's fabulous. It's an enjoyable moment in our life."

Viagra works for both men and women by increasing the blood flow to the genitals. Women need this blood flow, just as men do, to achieve sexual arousal.

Pfizer researcher Dr. Irwin Goldstein said he and his colleagues at Boston University Medical Center have not done a Viagra study with women, but says they have prescribed the drug to some 50 female patients. He said it has worked for most of them.

"It has shown evidence of enhanced lubrication, less pain, more arousal, less problems with orgasm," Goldstein said.

The Food and Drug Administration has not yet approved Viagra for women, but doctors can prescribe it for both sexes.

Goldstein said there's no reason to think the side effects, such as headaches and temporary visual problems, will be any different than in men. Viagra for men and woman can be deadly of taken with heart medicine containing nitrates.

Curently,there is no definitive research on Viagra and women.

Bioethicist Arthur Caplan, who has been a consultant to Pfizer, said its not yet safe for women to take.

"While I think it's worth exploring whether Viagra might be beneficial to women, it's abdolutely not time to be prescribing it to women," he said.

But Dorman disagrees.

"I think that if we want to continue to have a caring, family-oriented relationship amongst couples, there are women who have needs that must be addressed as equally as their male counterparts," she said.

It will be next year before Pfizer releases its results of studies with women and Viagra. Meanwhile, other pharmaceutical companies are investigating other treatments for women with sexual problems.

Women looking for their own version of Viagra

June 26, 1998
Web posted at: 5:56 p.m. EDT (2156 GMT)
Many women are turning to herbs to spark a lagging sex drive

http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9806/26/women.viagra/

KTLA reporter Willa Sandmeyer contributed to this report.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, California (CNN) -- The popularity of the male impotence drug Viagra may leave some women feeling a little left out.

Herbalist Bessie Smith of Capital Drugs in West Hollywood said she's been taking a lot of calls lately from women wanting to know if there's something they can take to spark a sagging sex life.

"Men will take Viagra and women will have to catch up as far as their sexual energy is concerned," she said.

Smith's top recommendation for an over-the-counter, sex-drive stimulant is damiana, an herb widely used in Latin America.

"You can make a hot tea out of it, and over a couple of days, it will just get in your system," she said.

Smith said one reason for a woman's lack of sexual strength may be overall exhaustion. To boost energy, she recommends Muira puama root and dong quai to female customers.

The Muira puama bush, found in Brazilianrain forests, has long been considered an aphrodisiac and treatment for impotency. Dong quai is a traditional herb in Chinese medicine used to aid female health and relieve muscle cramps.

"We have a lot of herbs to help stimulate the adrenal system, to get our endocrine systems revved up -- basically feeling better about yourself," Smith said.

Sex after 60: You betcha, survey says

September 28, 1998
Web posted at: 5:43 p.m. EDT (1743 GMT)

http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9809/28/elderly.sex/

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Almost half of Americans age 60 and up have sex at least once a month and one in four say they would like to have it more often, says a survey released Monday by the National Council on the Aging.

The survey of 1,300 people was funded by the Pfizer pharmaceutical company, maker of the male impotence drug Viagra.

"Our study debunks the prevailing myths about sexuality in older years," said James Firman, president of NCOA, in a statement. "For many older Americans, sex remains an important and vital part of their lives."

Thirty-nine percent said they are satisfied with the amount of sex they have even if they were having no sex at all. Men were about twice as likely to report wanting more sex.

The survey found 61 percent of older men and 37 percent of older women are sexually active. The survey credits the difference to women's longer life spans and lack of mates. Just 19 percent of widows and widowers in that age group are sexually active compared with 59 percent of married women and men.

Two-thirds of respondents said their sex lives are more emotionally satisfying now than when they were in their 40s, and 79 percent of men and 66 percent of women said that maintaining an active sex life is an important part of their relationship with their partner.

"This study underscores the enduring importance of sex among older men and women, even among these who report infrequent sexual activity," said Neal Cutler, NCOA's director of survey research. "When people are not sexually active, it is usually because they lack a partner or because they have a medical condition."

Marian Dunn, who heads the Sex Therapy Clinic at the State University of New York in Brooklyn, said older Americans need to be educated that sex is not bad for them. She added younger physicians often don't talk to older patients about sex due to what Dunn called misperception that older Americans are not actively involved in sex.

The survey questioned more than just sexual activity. It also asked seniors what qualities they seek in a partner. Nine out of 10 cited high moral character, pleasant personality, a sense of humor and intelligence.

More women than men said they were likely to seek financial security in a mate, while men where more likely to seek a partner who is interested in sex.

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