by Playfuls Staff |
16th February 2007
A Newcastle, England, mother said she's got Viagra to thank for her baby's life after the impotence drug opened up [more] blood vessels in the infant's lungs.
"He really is a miracle baby. They tried Viagra as a last resort. But it worked," Jade Goodfellow told the Mirror. "We even started to plan his funeral but everyone prayed so much for him and he pulled through."
Lewis Goodfellow was born in August, 16 weeks premature, and one of his lungs collapsed the next day, the Mirror reported. He had heart surgery a few weeks later to repair a duct, but his lungs were not getting enough oxygen into his bloodstream, the newspaper said. Doctors gave him some Viagra, which was originally developed to treat angina, and he immediately started to improve, the Mirror said.
Neonatologist Alan Fenton told the Mirror it's unusual to use Viagra on premature babies.
"It is a fairly new form of treatment. It has been used successfully in full-term babies, but it is unclear whether it works as well in very premature babies."
© 2007 UPI
