Sex spray grabs world attention

May 2005

Professor Susan Davis made headlines around the world earlier this year after she led clinical trials of a unique testosterone spray designed to improve women's sexual satisfaction.

The trials showed that using the spray, developed by Melbourne-based company Acrux, significantly improved younger women's sexual enjoyment and satisfaction.

The spray was tested on 261 pre-menopausal Australian women who had low libido and testosterone levels. The spray delivered testosterone as well as a substance that ensured the hormone was held in the skin and absorbed over 24 hours. Each woman kept a diary throughout the 16-week study -- in which she was also given 'dummy' doses -- to record all sexual events, along with the level of satisfaction.

The results of the study showed that by restoring hormone levels using the transdermal spray, women's sexual lives were also restored to a significant extent -- and with very few side-effects.

"Many young women report having low sexual interest and enjoyment and traditionally this has been explained away as being caused by relationship issues, depression or other life circumstances," Professor Davis says. "But now we know that for many women, the underlying problem is biological.

"If further studies reconfirm the benefits we have seen, this spray could make an enormous difference to the quality of many women's lives. This is about having a satisfying home and social life and having happier relationships and communities."

The spray-on treatment is a variation of drug delivery technology patented at the Victorian College of Pharmacy at Monash University. The clinical trial was part of the approval process for the US Food and Drug Administration. The next step will involve studies to confirm the effectiveness and safety of the therapy over a longer period.