Trending Clinical Topic of the Week (June 29 to July 5): Libido
News about two drugs used to treat a largely underrecognized condition resulted in this week's top trending clinical topic. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved bremelanotide, a libido-boosting drug, for the treatment of hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) in premenopausal women. Bremelanotide is designed to be self-administered subcutaneously at least 45 minutes before an anticipated sexual encounter. This approval and the attention it has since received may help increase awareness of HSDD. According to experts, women and physicians often don't recognize HSDD as a medical condition, similar to how depression was perceived in the past.
Bremelanotide joins flibanserin, the so-called "female Viagra," as the only medications approved by the FDA to treat HSDD. Recently, the FDA amended the alcohol warning for flibanserin. In a statement released this past April, the FDA explained that women taking flibanserin do not need to completely avoid alcohol. Although consuming alcohol close to the time when the medication is taken remains a concern, the FDA's recommendation has been modified and now advises discontinuing alcohol at least 2 hours before taking the drug at bedtime or skipping the dose that evening. Also, the recommendations state that women should not consume alcohol any sooner than the following morning after taking flibanserin at bedtime. Given the physical, psychological, and emotional toll that HSDD can have on those affected, it's no wonder that news about treatment resulted in this week's top trending clinical topic.
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Cite this: Ryan Syrek. Trending Clinical Topics for July 2019 - Medscape - Jul 26, 2019.
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