hard to swallow...
Can there be a single man or woman with a computer on the planet who has not at some time received an unsolicited email offering a therapy for erectile dysfunction? According to security firm Clearswift, the reason the tide of Viagra spam continues to rise is that people are quite willing to pay a grossly inflated price for an unauthenticated product if it means they don't have to admit to their doctor that they are experiencing problems.
Healthcare products now account for more than 30% of the unwanted emails that find their way into our in-boxes, and it is estimated that those trying to sell such products on-line have a hit rate of around 1 in 40,000 - not bad considering the very low marketing costs.
No wonder then that Pfizer has started a legal campaign against spammers and online pharmacies pushing fake Viagra. In a survey 25% of men believed that Pfizer was responsible for sending the Viagra-themed spam. Pfizer is directly suing five organisations and individuals that it claims are infringing its trademarks, engaging in unfair competition and deceptive practices in selling non-approved Viagra or illegal generic versions of it. It is also attempting to seize 24 websites that it claims are trading illegally on the Viagra name and are trying to sell illegal versions of the drug.
Viagra's effectiveness as a treatment for ED was discovered coincidentally during clinical trials, and although this is now its primary use, it has other possible applications. For example, it can be used to protect the lungs of climbers at high altitude by preventing pulmonary hypertension, researchers at the University of Giessen have found.
Fourteen healthy male mountaineers were given either Viagra or placebo and were tested at both sea level and at high altitude. It was found sildenafil reduced high blood pressure and improved the transport of oxygen in the blood in both situations.
But just how many men will be able to convince their doctor they need Viagra because they are taking their annual holiday in Nepal rather than Marbella this year remains to be seen.