New Zealand bans 65 male potency treatments in two years

Oct 6, 2011, 3:00 GMT

Wellington - New Zealand health authorities announced Thursday that they had banned another two erectile dysfunction treatments out of health risk concerns, bringing to 65 the number of similar products blacklisted in the last two years.

Director-General of Health Kevin Woods said the purportedly herbal products sold as Get Stiff and Maxi Mize contained undeclared prescription medicines and posed a potentially fatal health risk.

They had been found to be adulterated with prescription medicines including vardenafil, the active ingredient in Levitra, the only brand approved for sale in New Zealand to treat erectile dysfunction.

Woods said Vardenafil and other prescription ingredients found in the banned treatments were known to interfere with certain heart medications and could be fatal.

Vardenafil and similar prescription drugs should only be used on the advice of an authorized medical practitioner and after the benefits and risks have been assessed, he said.

The products were promoted and sold by various retailers, including so-called adult shops, and over the internet as treatments to enhance sexual performance or treat erectile dysfunction.

Woods ordered the two products to be recalled and said people should stop taking them immediately.

'Since July 2009, the Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Authority (Medsafe) has identified 65 ostensibly herbal supplements to enhance sexual performance which have been adulterated with similar prescription medicines,' Woods said.