Premature ejaculation (PE) is defined as "persistent or recurrent onset of orgasm and ejaculation with minimal sexual stimulation before, on, or shortly after penetration and before the person wishes it."
The psychological elements of distress and dissatisfaction may account for the traditional view of PE as a psychological condition. It has recently been suggested that PE might be associated with perturbations in serotonergic 5-hydroxytrptamine (5-HT) neurotransmission. This had led to the development of targeted therapies for PE that might alter the 5-HT system.
In a recent study by Francisco Giuliano from Garches Frances studies the efficacy of a novel therapeutic agent, dapoxetine, for the treatment of premature ejaculation. The study is published in the July 2007 European Urology Supplements .
Dapoxetine hydrochloride is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) with a short half-life developed specifically for the treatment of men with PE. SSRI's increase 5-HT neurotransmission however, most available SSRI's such as fluoxetine, sertraline, and paroxetine, which have been shown to increase ejaculatory latency time, do not reach peak plasma concentrations for several hours. This does not allow for the available drugs to be used as on-demand preparations. Dapoxetine has inhibitory effects on serotonin reuptake and the time to maximal plasma concentration is only 1 hour. The initial elimination half-life is 1.2 hours and the plasma concentration at 24 hours is < 5% of the maximal concentration. These properties allow for dapoxetine to be delivered as an on-demand preparation.