<B>In some</B> postmenopausal women with sexual arousal problems, treatment with Viagra (sildenafil) is effective and well tolerated, according to a new study. Compared with women who took an inactive pill, or placebo, those who received Viagra reported ?substantial positive effects on sexual function,? although women who had also had less sexual desire had no significant benefits.

Researchers led by Dr Jennifer R. Berman at the University of California-Los Angeles Medical Center in Los Angeles, California studied 202 women with ?a persistent or recurring inability to attain or maintain sufficient sexual excitement that causes personal distress, which may be experienced as a lack of subjective excitement, genital lubrication-swelling, genital sensation or other somatic responses.?

To be part of the study, women had to have certain levels of hormones in their blood and-or be receiving hormone replacement therapy. Those with emotional or abuse issues that might contribute to the disorder were excluded. The benefits of treatment included significant improvements in genital sensation during intercourse or stimulation and in their satisfaction with intercourse or foreplay, or both.

While there were significant improvements on Viagra, the authors recommend that doctors take a thorough medical and psychological history from women seeking treatment for sexual problems to determine if other methods of treatment could work.