Some gay men may be misusing Viagra

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Some gay men are using Viagra recreationally, and are more likely to do so if they are also using illegal drugs, new research indicates.

However, the investigators caution that the men included in the study were all attending a sex resort in northeastern Georgia, and the findings are not representative of trends among all gay men.

U.S. investigators Richard Crosby of the University of Kentucky in Lexington and his co-author R. J. DiClemente found that men in the study who experimented with cocaine and ecstasy were nearly three times more likely to have used Viagra without a prescription in the previous three months.

Nevertheless, the results raise concerns, Crosby and DiClemente write. Taking Viagra may increase the risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) because the drug can prolong sex and enhance the size of an erection, which increases friction, they note.

These are two effects “that could conceivably foster tissue abrasion and therefore increase the odds of STI transmission,” they write in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections.

To investigate how often men who have sex with men use Viagra, the researchers asked visitors to the sex resort to complete a questionnaire. One hundred and sixty-four men agreed to participate in the study.

Men were an average of 40 years old, and mostly white. They reported an average of 10 sex partners during the past three months.

Approximately 16 percent of the participants said they had tried non-prescription Viagra during sex in the past 3 months.

Among people who also used ecstasy during sex, 35 percent said they also used Viagra, compared with only 13 percent of people who did not take ecstasy during sex. And 37 percent of cocaine-users also admitted to using Viagra, while only 13 percent of non-users said they had done so.

Men were no more likely to try Viagra if they also engaged in risky sexual behaviors such as having five or more sex partners or having unprotected anal sex.

These findings suggest that experts need to educate men about the potential risks of non-prescription use of Viagra, the authors write.

SOURCE: Sexually Transmitted Infections, December 2004.

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