Viagra proves effective in treating medical condition in infants
10:31 a.m. Friday, July 25, 2008
St. Petersburg, Fla. — Little Noah Nero is only 10-months-old, but his mom gives him Viagra every day.
"It's still kind of a joke what a stud Noah is because he's on Viagra," Cherish Nero said.
The little blue pill is a popular treatment for erectile dysfunction. Cherish says that was a concern when doctors at All Children's Hospital prescribed it for Noah.
"The first thought in my mind was what else is it going to do for him besides work as a pulmonary dilator," she said.
But their doctor, Gul Dadlani, reassured the family.
"Infants and young children don't get the same effect as old men do with their Viagra therapy," Dadlani said.
He says Viagra is a wonder drug for babies who were born with pulmonary hypertension.
"As the blood flow goes to the lung, the arteries in the lung become constricted or tightened. With Viagra therapy it relaxes those vessels and allows more blood flow to go to the lungs and improves the symptoms for the patient," he said.
Now, obviously babies can't pop a little blue pill. So, pharmacists have to crush it and give it to them in liquid form.
Dadlani says because of the success they've had with Viagra, more and more babies are prescribed the medication.
Sophie Sanders has been on the drug for two-years.
"I would say that Viagra did save her life at one point," Sophie's mom, Tanya Sanders, said. "Right now we are weaning off of it."
Nero credits Viagra for doing the same for Noah.
"It definitely has saved his life. It's what got us off of the ventilator and out of the hospital," she said.
So from the bedroom to the nursery, Viagra's proving valuable to a whole new set of patients.
Viagra does carry some risk for babies. Doctors say if the levels are too high it can drop blood pressure. Also, there are no studies completed on long-term effects.
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