WASHINGTON: The first drug to treat low sexual desire in women won approval from US health regulators on Tuesday, but with a warning about potentially dangerous low blood pressure and fainting side effects, especially when taken with alcohol.

The US Food and Drug Administration said the pink pill, to be sold under the brand name Addyi and made by privately held Sprout Pharmaceuticals, will only be available through certified and specially trained health care professionals and pharmacies due to its safety issues.

Addyi, whose chemical name is flibanserin, is designed for premenopausal women whose lack of sexual desire causes distress. The condition is formally known as hypoactive sexual desire disorder, or HSDD. The drug needs to be taken daily. Addyi has been nicknamed the “female Viagra” even though it does not work like Pfizer Inc’s blockbuster Viagra pill for men that in 1998 became the first approved drug for erectile dysfunction.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2015

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