Levitra (vardenafil HCl) is rapidly capturing a growing percentage of new prescriptions in the oral erectile dysfunction (ED) treatment market, according to data from Verispan Source Prescription Audit (SPA). In the weeks since Levitra became available in the U.S., more than 1.5 million Levitra pills have been dispensed nationwide. Levitra is co-developed and co-promoted by Bayer and GlaxoSmithKline.

Recent results from two independent, comparative European studies conducted to evaluate patient preference for the three oral ED treatment options indicated that Levitra was preferred over Viagra+ (sildenafil citrate) and Cialis (tadalafil). In a preliminary analysis, study investigator Frank Sommer, M.D., Ph.D., reported that more men chose Levitra as their preferred option (47 percent) compared with Viagra (34 percent) or Cialis (19 percent) at the recommended starting dose. Levitra also was found to be the preferred option at the maximum dose (43 percent compared with 40 percent for Cialis and 17 percent for Viagra).

"Even though Levitra has been on the market for just a few months, there has been a tremendous amount of excitement among my patients. Many have specifically asked if Levitra is right for them," said Randall B. Meacham, M.D., associate professor and chief, Division of Urology, University of Colorado School of Medicine. "The fact that it has a rapid onset of action and provides quality firmness has a lot of men with ED asking for Levitra."

The broad awareness of ED as a common health condition and Levitra as a new treatment option has been due, in part, to the extensive reach and frequency that the first pharmaceutical sponsorship of the National Football League (NFL) has provided. Never before has the League and its sponsors embarked on such a comprehensive campaign focusing on men's health. Football is the most watched sport among men in the target audience. Each week, 120 million fans tune in to NFL games on television providing Bayer and GSK with a unique opportunity to reach them with important messages about men's health.

ED - the consistent or recurrent inability of a man to attain and/or maintain a penile erection sufficient for performance -- is a common health condition among men that is largely untreated. It is estimated that some degree of ED affects more than one half of all men over the age of 40 -- 152 million men worldwide and 30 million men in the United States alone.

Bayer and GSK evaluated Levitra in an extensive clinical trial program that included more than 50 trials involving more than 5,700 men. Results from phase III clinical studies showed that Levitra:

• Helped men get and keep firm sufficient for satisfactory performance
• Provided first-time success and reliable improvement of firmness for many men
• Worked in men of various ages and race and in those with co-existing medical conditions, such as diabetes, and in men who have had their prostate removed
• Demonstrated a rapid response, allowing a man to initiate or respond to stimulation when the time is right
• Can be taken without regard to meals making it convenient for use

Levitra has received regulatory approval for the treatment of ED in more than 50 countries. Levitra was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of ED on August 19, 2003, providing men with their first new ED treatment choice in five years.