JOIE CHEN, CNN ANCHOR: Medical news tonight, the first pill to treat impotence is expected on pharmacy shelves within weeks. The Food and Drug Administration approved Pfizer's Viagra today.</s>DR. JOE FECZKO, PFIZER, INC.: Viagra works naturally with sexual stimulation. It is not an aphrodisiac. It is an oral tablet, it is simple, straightforward to use and not invasive.</s>RHONDA ROWLAND, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Viagra clearly ranks near the top as getting the most publicity of any drug that's been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.</s>UNIDENTIFIED CNN CORRESPONDENT: Impotence affects as many as 20 million men at some point in their lives. But for some, it is a chronic problem. Until now, most treatments have required injections, implants, or devices.</s>ROWLAND: I don't think people realized that maybe impotence was as big of a problem as it really is, so once they saw the sales figures, that became readily apparent. So clearly, to just have a pill to help with the problem of impotence was a major advance. But not only that, it was kind of a cultural advance. I don't think anybody ever really realized that it would become, say the butt of some jokes, it sparked almost a mini-sexual revolution among older couples. So there was a -- it just had a huge impact both medically as well as culturally. And as far Viagra sales go for Pfizer, the maker of Viagra, it's been one of the biggest money makes of any drug out there.
CNN 20: FDA Approves Viagra, March 27,1998