Doctors advised to limit Viagra to two pills a month

8th December 2011 - GPs are being advised to limit prescriptions for men with erectile dysfunction to two pills a month. The details have emerged in a document drawn up by the South Central Priorities Committee.

The decision affects prescriptions for sildenafil (Viagra), vardenafil (Levitra) and tadalafil (Cialis).

NHS managers are also recommending that GPs do not offer counselling and psychotherapy for men with erectile dysfunction, vacuum erection devices or penile implants.

The advice, which was issued in May this year, covers the primary care trust (PCT) areas of Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire East and Berkshire West.

Sildenafil, vardenafil and tadalafil belong to a group of medications called phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitors (PDE-5 inhibitors) which can help men to attain an erection with sexual stimulation.

Financial impact

The committee acknowledges that PDE-5 inhibitors are effective but recommends that because of the financial impact of prescribing them, men should be limited to two tablets each month.

The document was uncovered by the GP's magazinePulse.

A statement emailed to us from the NHS Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Cluster said: "Any decision made by the PCT cannot prohibit prescribing but will form a recommendation to GPs."

Medical conditions

The Department of Health said that Viagra and other similar medicines could be prescribed for men with erectile dysfunction who had specific medical conditions or had undergone certain surgical procedures.

In a statement, a spokesperson said: "It is only right that PCTs encourage and support appropriate and cost effective GP prescribing and GPs must be able to prescribe a particular drug as they see fit, according to their patient's clinical need, unless it is restricted nationally.

"Viagra and other medicines for the treatment of erectile dysfunction can only be prescribed on the NHS when certain conditions are met."