Kids' Form of Viagra to Treat Lung Disease

In return, Pfizer gets another 6 months for patent on adult drug

By Nick McMaster

Posted Jul 28, 2010 3:51 PM CDT

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Kids' Form of Viagra to Treat Lung Disease — Pills of the drug Lipitor (R) made by Warner-Lambert, and Viagra (L) made by Pfizer, are shown February 7, 2000 in New York. (Getty Images)

Pfizer plans to produce a form of Viagra designed to treat a rare form of lung disease in children. Doctors can use Viagra's well-known ability to modify blood flow to treat sufferers of pulmonary arterial hypertension, a disorder in which a child suffers from unusually high blood pressure in the lungs, the New York Post reports.

It wouldn't be a money-maker for the company, but the feds are offering an incentive: Pfizer would get a 6-month extension on the patent for the adult form of Viagra, which expires in 2012. A panel of FDA advisers will decide whether to approve Pfizer's new product tomorrow.

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