Viagra Basics: Using Sex Pill Viagra To Cure Heart Diseases In Kids

Viagra not only helps men relieve sexual dysfunctions, it also assists children with life threatening heart diseases. If your child is suffering from pulmonary hypertension, Viagra can help. Pulmonary hypertension is a rare disease in which the artery carrying blood from the heart to the lungs becomes constricted. Almost instantly the child’s blood pressure and heart rate will dip. Within a matter of few months on Viagra, the pressure in pulmonary artery will decrease to almost normal.

Study the Effects of Viagra

The drug that has put a new lease on life for 16 million American men since its inception as a treatment for erectile dysfunction is making its presence felt in a new role for children suffering from heart diseases.

In 2005, the most detailed study to date of Viagra therapy on children with pulmonary hypertension came to the conclusion that after a year of treatment, the children could walk four times further before becoming exhausted. All 14 children who participated were alive at the end of the Toronto study which unusual for a disease that has a 12 month mortality rate of 37%.

Encouraged by the initial response, Pfizer, the maker of Viagra, is working overtime to recruit patients for a large scale trial as a step toward marketing the drug for youth use.

Side Effects of Viagra when used for Heart Diseases

Viagra amplifies the body's chemical reaction to sexual stimulation, rather than triggering erections directly. Because of this, there is no risk of the little blue pills having sexual side effects in children. Media reports of Viagra’s success in patients suffering with pulmonary hypertension has lead to widespread response in "off label" prescriptions.

Although many children around the world have already been treated with Viagra, there is some need for caution because the long term complications are as yet unknown. According to one study, a few parents report increased aggression in their children. Doctors are also concerned that the drug may affect the developing retina, leading to optical issues later in life.

Body levels Increase of Cyclic GMP when using Viagra

Many parents of children with pulmonary hypertension are convinced that Viagra is effective.  They are of the opinion that it significantly minimizes the amount of time the children spend on mechanical ventilation and in the ICU. Viagra is useful for preventing rebound pulmonary hypertension among children because it affects pathways involved. Viagra increases the body's levels of cyclic GMP, a naturally occurring substance that relaxes arteries and minimizes their pressure. Cyclic GMP is well supplied in the lungs and is the molecule through which nitric oxide makes it presence felt as a dilator of pulmonary arteries.