FDA rejects “Female Viagra” drug: Wants more data

The Food and Drug Administration failed to approved a drug that is designed to treat low sex-drive in women.

Flibanserin, also knows as “female viagra” or “pink viagra”, was voted down 10-1 by an FDA advisory panel who said that using the drug was not significantly better than using a placebo.

“Not convinced of the clinical meaningful benefit of flibanserin,” said Paula Hillard, gynecologist from the Stanford University School of Medicine.

Flibanserin was developed by the German Firm Boehringer Ingelheim and was touted to have the ability to provide “satisfying sexual events” in pre-menopausal women suffering from “Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder” or HSDD.

In addition to its FDA approval setback the drug is already creating a stir of controversy as experts are worried that it would be used to treat what some believe to be a bogus or invented illness.

In response to the drug’s web promotion, which began before it the FDA had a chance to weigh in on its effectiveness, Thea Cacchioni of the University of British Columbia labeled the it a “thinly veiled marketing campaign filled with bias, misinformation and celebrity endorsement.”

Some were more blunt in their evaluation flibanserin, “I think it’s a scam,” said said Leonore Tiefer with the NYU School of Medicine.

Commercially knows as Girosa flibanserin has yet to be approved for sale in any country to date.

Flibanserin falls into the the family of antidepressants. Antidepressants reduce the level of serotonin, which can put a damper on sexual desire, in the brain. According to the FDA study the drug also comes with side effects which include dizziness and feelings of depression.