CARNAL NATION

A new spray, known as PSD502, may be the first pharmaceutical product to help men maintain erections for prolonged periods of time during sexual activity. A study of 256 men in the United States, Canada and Poland found that those who used the experimental spray lasted five times longer than those who were given a placebo treatment.

The Press Association reports that users who applied PSD502 five minutes before sexual intercourse were able to maintain erections and delay ejaculations. They reported higher levels of sexual satisfaction and reduced stress associated with performance pressure.

Researcher Stanley Althof, from the Centre for Marital and Sexual Health of South Florida describes premature ejaculation: "Recently, the international sexual health community agreed that PE should be defined as ejaculation occurring within approximately one minute of penetration that causes the patient distress. Now we need to work to develop treatments, and these encouraging results with PSD502 seem to be a step in the right direction."

This American-based study replicates findings from previous research in other countries in which participants also reported improved sexual activity after use of PSD502. Earlier this year, men from the United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland reported an average increase in time from penetration to ejaculation of 3.2 minutes. After three months of treatment, men who used PSD502 were able to prolong sexual activity and reported no systemic side effects.