Import the replacement line
It should be noted that today drugs for the treatment of erectile dysfunction are produced both in Russia and abroad: also in Belarus, India, the United States, Slovenia, Turkey, Greece, Hungary, Israel and even Iceland. In Russia, some enterprises produce a drug whose name coincides with the active ingredient, Sildenafil, and in addition to the already mentioned Jenta, brands such as Sildenalav, Sildemax, Sealex are represented. Among the foreign brands are well-known names such as Cialis, Levitra and others.
According to experts, import substitution in the field of erectile dysfunction treatment is well established at the moment. “There have been many studies on the bioequivalence of domestic sildenafil preparations with foreign originals,” says Dmitry Zhuravsky. – In terms of pharmacological quality and efficacy, they are practically not inferior to imported ones. Patients respond positively to these drugs ”.
For imported drugs, the situation is ambiguous. Although the sanctions did not officially affect the supply of medicines, there have been changes in the sale of medicines, especially those that do not belong to the vital group. First, the logistical routes have become more complicated, and secondly, the policy of some companies has changed. For example, the American company Eli Lilly has stopped delivering a drug to combat erectile dysfunction to Russia.
According to DSM’s retail audit, there were 19 imported brands on the market as of July 2022: drugs for the treatment of erectile dysfunction. All show a decline in packaged sales, including the top three imported drugs. Then, for 7 months, sales of Viagra (leader of the Sildenafil molecule, manufacturer Pfizer Inc) fell by 16%; Cialis (leader of the molecule Tadalafil, manufacturer Eli Lilly & CO) – by 3%, and Levitra (leader of the molecule vardenafil, manufacturer Bayer AG) – by 94%. It should be noted that the decline in sales does not directly indicate a decrease in imports, since the decrease can also be caused by other factors: decrease in purchasing power, purchases for future use in March 2022, etc.
In general, experts do not see a particular shortage of popular PDE-5 inhibitor drugs. “Pharmacies offer both foreign originals of the drug and generic domestic analogues,” says Dmitry Zhuravsky.
As Mikhail Faniev noted, the fact that they shouldn’t disappear from the shelves can also be attributed to the advantages of Russian drugs. “In my opinion, Russian drugs are able to fully meet the demand of patients,” says Dmitry Zhuravsky. – Another thing is that they are made from imported raw materials. In addition, manufacturers use foreign equipment. So this question, on the perspective of their use, is not entirely on a medical level. Much will depend on the general economic and political situation in the country and in the world ”.
