Steven A. Kaplan, MD, shares initial data on sildenafil oral spray vs tablets

In this video, Steven A. Kaplan, MD, shares findings from a phase 1 study of ASP-001, an investigational oral formulation of sildenafil for patients with erectile dysfunction. Kaplan is a professor of urology at the Icahn School of Medicine and director of the Men’s Wellness Program at Mount Sinai in New York, New York.

Video Transcript:

What we did in this study is to look at what happened in terms of pure absorption. So, these were patients who were given either 4 mL of the suspension vs 100 mg of sildenafil. What we found is that there was a faster absorption. I mean significantly faster absorption, which is what we hoped and what we thought. But it's kind of nice when you do the study and it actually happens. There was a higher average amount in the bloodstream compared to Viagra tablets. So, this is not generic, it's the Viagra tablets itself. That suggested to us [and] it's reasonable to assume that this suspension is absorbed more quickly. In addition, the average levels of the medication in the bloodstream, at least during the first 30 minutes, was higher. So, our thought process that if you deliver it that way, as a spray under your tongue, it would be absorbed faster, came out. It was very nice to see. It's always nice when you have a hypothetical concept and then all of a sudden, you do it clinically, and then it's working. We were very excited about that. The absorption thing is clear. It's very, very clear. The data wasn't like, "Well..." No, it's pretty clear. It's absorbed faster. It starts getting absorbed in 5 minutes, and that is much faster than we see with Viagra.

This transcription has been edited for clarity.

Kaplan is a member of the medical advisory board for Aspargo Labs.