“Viagra for Women” on the British Market

A testosterone patch to increase the female sex drive went on the market this week in the UK. Intrinsa can be prescribed only to women who have had menopause or hysterectomies. Unlike Viagra, Intrinsa takes up to a few weeks to take effect. Intrinsa targets Female Sexual Dysfunction, which was only seven years ago officially recognized as a disorder.The UK’s Daily Mail predicts that Intrinsa will become a “lifestyle drug.” Salon worries Intrinsa will set up unreasonable expectations for the female libido. And I think that since the roots of Female Sexual Dysfunction are often social, not physiological, a designer drug may not be the best fix.

—Rose Miller