That would be me!
I was reading another site and was stunned to read that researchers are studying Viagra as a treatment for Multiple Sclerosis. The following is what I found in a internet search and I’m still a bit surprised since this is the first I’ve heard of it.
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona researchers have discovered that Viagra® (sildenafil) drastically reduces multiple sclerosis symptoms in animal models with the disease. The research, published in Acta Neuropathologica, demonstrates that a practically complete recovery occurs in 50% of the animals after eight days of treatment. Researchers are confident that clinical trials soon will be carried out in patients given that the drug is well tolerated and has been used to treat sexual dysfunction in some multiple sclerosis patients.
Multiple sclerosis is the most common chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system and one of the main causes of disability among young adults. The disease is caused by the presence of multiple focuses of demyelination (loss of myelin sheaths around the axons, affecting the ability of neurons to communicate) and neurodegeneration in different areas of the central nervous system. There is currently no cure for the disease, although some drugs have proven effective in fighting symptoms and preventing it from progressing.
A research team from the UAB Institute of Biotechnology and Biomedicine directed by Dr Agustina García, in collaboration with the research team directed by Dr Juan Hidalgo from the UAB Institute of Neurosciences, has studied the effects of a treatment using sildenafil, sold as Viagra®, in an animal model of multiple sclerosis known as experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Researchers demonstrated that a daily treatment with sildenafil after disease onset quickly reduced clinical signs, with a practically complete recovery in 50% of the cases after eight days of treatment. Scientists observed how the drug reduced the infiltration of inflammatory cells into the white matter of the spinal cord, thus reducing damage to the nerve cell’s axon and facilitating myelin repair.
Sidenafil, together with tadalafil (Cialis®) and vardenafil (Levitra®), form part of a group of vasodilator drugs known as phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors, used in the treatment of erectile dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension. Recent studies in animal models of central nervous system pathologies already pointed to the fact that in addition to vasodilation, these drugs could contain other neuroprotective actions and suggest their usefulness as possible treatments of both acute (cerebrovascular stroke) and chronic (Alzheimer’s) neuropathologies. Research published in 2010 in theJournal of Neurochemistry by the same research group from UAB demonstrated that one of these inhibitors reduced neuroinflammation and neuronal damage in animal models of traumatic brain injury.
Multiple Sclerosis And Beyond 
You know a lot of folks are trying different things and That is good. What is NOT good are people that jump the gun and take a TEST as a CURE. RULE #1: UNLESS A PARTICULAR TREATMENT RETARDS OR REPLACES THE MYELIN IN THE BRAIN/SPINE, THAT PARTICULAR TREATMENT DOES NOT HELP THE DISEASE OF MS. THESE ARE FACTS AND THESE FACTS CAN NOT BE DISPUTED. Sooooo before you start popping Viagra let the long term study do its job. IN THE MEANTIME, YOUR BEST BET, IN FACT YOUR ONLY BET, IS TO GO SEE YOUR DOCTOR AND DO WHAT HE/SHE SAYS!!!.
I think I’ve heard it all, its a boner pill now, what drug companies will do to sell there product or services. Last week the cure was a build up of iron in the brain. So everyone becareful of scams and put your wallet away, consult with doctor that specialized with MS. I’ve been dealing with this disease for the last 25 years and wish research one day have a clue or direction.
Are you going to talk to your doc about these vasodilators? Are there natural vasodilators?
Hi Kit, I probably will ask about this but insurance will not cover Viagra. And at a cost of $28.00 a pill it’s a bit spendy as a daily treatment. I will follow the research though because it does increase blood flow which is what some people believe may have a big effect on the stopping MS! Will see?
It does make some sense. Viagra increases the blood flow and oxygen delivery. Just as some MS patients benifit from hyperbaric oxygen to repair lesions maybe the viagra will help repair after a relapse. (Strangely enough my wife has ms and pulmonary hypertension and has viagra as her PH treatment.) Her MS was stable before the PH came along so it’s hard to see if there is an improvement)
Tony
That is very interesting! Thanks for sharing this.
http://tinyurl.com/zpnpdet
You are so cool! I don’t think I have read through a single thing like this before.
So nice to discover somebody with some original thoughts on this topic.
Really.. thanks for starting this up. This site is something that’s needed on the web, someone with a little originality!
Excellent blog here! Also your web site loads up very fast! What web host are you using? Can I get your affiliate link to your host? I wish my website loaded up as quickly as yours lol kdbcgkedekdd
The web host here is WordPress.
It very interesting as my wife has ms and pulmonary hypertension. She developed pulmonary hypertension after being on rebif for 10 years. There may or may not be a link.
However…. She is on sildenifil 75mg three times a day. I can assure you I have seen no change in her MS. She moved from rebif to copaxone as rebif has a small number of PH cases emerging and copaxone has different method of working.
She is also on warfarin to thin the blood and mecatentan to increase the sats (oxygen carried in the blood)
So anicdotal evidence of one case, doesn’t work!
“Great Blogpost! Thanks for one’s marvelous posting! I _genuinely enjoyed”
“Great Blogpost! Thanks for sharing your info. I really appreciate your efforts and I will_ be waiting for your further write ups thank you once again.”
HOW I WAS CURED TOTALLY FROM MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
I had my first attack of multiple sclerosis (MS) when I was 33, I wasn’t diagnosed until seven months later when I became totally numb from the neck down. It was so terrifying that I began dropping things and losing the dexterity in my fingers, having severe fatigue and muscle weakness. A horrible itch began on my chest with no rash present. I sometimes can’t walk straight and fall onto walls and I get random prickles in my hands and legs.all the English medications i used proved abortive. i was so frustrated that i had to contact My neurologist,he told me about a new RRMS (relapsing-remitting MS) drug which was only in its trial stage, CAMPATH. I started the chemo-type treatment and some prescribed drugs like: AVONEX, BETASERON, COPAXONE and REBIF. which resulted in 1st seizure of my life, thereby adding more salt to my injury. As a result to proffer solution to my problems, i started going online in search for a cure, i came across a testimony of a woman who got her cure through HERBAL MEDICATION, at first, i doubted because of the misconception that multiple sclerosis can not be cured. But i later contacted the Doctor through the email provided, and I used his Herbal product, after 1 month of use, I noticed tremendous improvement in my health, 5 months after, I can proudly say, I’ve been totally cured by Dr.Allen’s Herbal Medication from MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS…, If you have the same health issue, you may contact him for a total change of story, Via: drallenchase@gmail.com. I believe your predicament will be a thing of the past just like mine.
Hi, viagra has been shown to assist people with Raynaud syndrome, where the blood is restricted to fingers. Trial were conducted on people with severe forms of this syndrome who had developed ulceration in their fingers due to the severity of restriction of blood flow. Most people on the trial had significant improvement and ulcers that would not heal started to heal. Many when of the trials continued on the med as an off label medication. The med has a short life but even those on one dose a day had improved blood flow after 24 hours.
One individual that uses it has benefited enormously, she uses 25mg tablet 4 times a day. This patient has worked out general management methods to reduce the consequences of this disease which had helped her, on trying viagra she found a marked improvement in her condition and continues to use her trusted methods of minimising the effects and has improved the consequences of the syndrome on her daily life by the inclusion of this medication.
All though viagra does relax blood flow so may help such syndromes where this is a factor, Viagra has been shown to assist people that have MS who are having cognitive difficulties but some trials have shown that viagra has an imusupressant effect and as such when given to those that have relapsing remitting at the start of a flare up the symptoms are less severe and return to their MS base line much more quickly. Research has indicated that less demyalation occurs.
It is important that people who are on meds for aging do not use this med as it can be a dangerous combination. There is sound evidence out there that this could well assist those with MS but I would not suggest that people ditch there DMD’s for Viagra but as the remainder of therapies are palliative Viagra might be a soloutiin for those of us that can not tolerate DMD’s which have their own very distinctive dangers and problems.
Thanks for the update James!
Correction I meant to say angina but typed ageing
what a load of crap, i have ms and take viagra regulary dont help one bit, and as for the tree hugger up there with the natural herbs, yeeah right i wish
I never tried Viagra but thought that the article was interesting so wrote this little piece about it. It doesn’t surprise me that it has little if any effect on MS!