Intrinsa indications

Intrinsa is a transdermal patch that helps women with sexual dysfunction get back their sexual desire and libido. It comes in the form of a thin, clear, oval patch and has the natural hormone testosterone as its active substance testosterone. Intrinsa works by constantly releasing small amounts of testosterone into the bloodstream through the skin.

Intrinsa works by releasing the male hormone testosterone through the skin into the bloodstream. Testosterone is naturally occurring in women, and is produced by the ovaries and the adrenal gland. However, levels of the hormone decline with age, sometimes dramatically so after the menopause or after a hysterectomy. Testosterone therapy is systemic and needs to be applied over a period of weeks or months to have a noticeable effect. P&G licensed the treatment to Watson Pharmaceuticals.

The amount of testosterone in the patch, 300µg/24hrs, is significantly lower than in testosterone patches for men. The patch is virtually transparent and about the size of an egg and is worn just below the navel and changed twice weekly.

FSD covers at least four different conditions: problems with desire, arousal, achieving orgasm, and genital pain.

The patch aims to increase libido in women. Doctors have used a range of other treatments for women, including various hormones, antidepressants, and male impotence drugs like Viagra, Levitra, and Cialis. According to a P&G survey on female health 30 million women are naturally menopausal, 3 million are distressed by their lack of sexual desire, and 20% of 25 million women who are surgically menopausal are distressed.

In P&G's studies over six months of surgically menopausal women, those who received a placebo said satisfying sexual activity increased by an average of 19%, vs. a 73% increase for Intrinsa patch users. In the placebo group, women had an average increase in satisfying sexual episodes of 0.5 per month, while those with patches had an average increase of 1.9 episodes per month.