Affected by covid-19, Monica Almeida, a 37-year-old British nurse, was admitted to hospital on November 9, before being plunged into an artificial coma on November 16. Placed on an artificial respirator, her condition gradually deteriorated. But 72 hours before disconnecting the respirator, the doctors had the idea of using sildenafil, the Viagra molecule, as a last-ditch treatment. Their idea was to dilate the asthmatic nurse’s blood vessels to open up her airways. And it worked!
A still experimental test
“It’s my Christmas miracle! In 48 hours, viagra opened my blood vessels and my lungs began to react” explains the nurse who was able to return home for the end of year celebrations with her children and her family from Portugal.
Currently, scientists are performing tests to determine if sildenafil can be used in the same way as a nitric oxide inhalation, to increase blood oxygen levels. Viagra can be given to UK patients with covid-19 provided they have previously agreed to take part in studies of certain experimental drugs. This was the case of this nurse, who had signed this authorization before sinking into a coma.
Remember that when Viagra was put on the market in 1998, it was primarily intended to treat angina pectoris, a coronary disease due to poor irrigation of the heart. It was only then that the famous little blue pill was prescribed to treat erectile dysfunction.
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-1698484526.jpg "Erectile dysfunction: exercise as effective as Viagra?")
