When a man approaches his doctor for the treatment of his erectile dysfunction (ED), the first question he logically asks is, "What medication works best?"
It is really a choice between the three drugs currently in the market – Viagra, Levitra and Cialis. Although these medications generally have similar results and side effects, the potency of Cialis lasts much longer compared to that of the other two drugs – sometimes lasting more than 36 hours.
There have been numerous studies conducted to compare the PDE-5 inhibitors to placebo, but only a few studies have been dedicated to the comparison of the three PDE-5 inhibitors versus each other. There has been, however, an article published in the July 2006 edition of the Journal of Sexual Medicine that showed the interesting results of one of these studies.
In the United Kingdom, a study conducted by Dr. John Dean, with his associates, observed 367 men over a period of 24 weeks. During the first 12 weeks, the men were randomly told to use either Viagra or Cialis, then change to the other medication during the next 12 weeks. Then the men were asked to choose which of the two drugs they found more preferable, and which they will be taking for 8 more weeks.
71% of the men studied selected Cialis while only 29% chose Viagra. Most of the men said that the reasons for their choice were the longer-lasting effects of the medication, as well as the firmer erection that they got. Also, the men who opted for Cialis said they had a higher self-confidence during their sexual activities, and that they had more sexual spontaneity.
This study does not demonstrate that Cialis is better in the Cialis versus Viagra wars, but it does suggest that psychosocial relationship factors, in addition to simple efficacy and tolerability of a drug, are very important in selecting the right treatment for ED.
There is no scientific proof in this study that Cialis works better than Viagra, but it can be seen that for the men using the medications, simple effectiveness of the drugs is not enough. It is also important to consider certain psychosocial relationship factors when choosing the medication that will work best for you.
