Prescribing for the "Swedish Viagra Man"

Cultural and social studies of sildenafil (Viagra) have shown how it in influence more than just blood flow in the penis. Sildenafil has introduced the term "erectile dysfunction" (ED) to the general public, changing wider cultural perceptions and the treatment of impotence. This article presents results from a study on how this pharmaceutical drug was introduced to a Swedish audience, where direct-to-consumer marketing is not all allowed. Our studies of the online market information (presented as health education) show that not only does the globalization of the pharmaceutical market make medicines available to international consumers, it also spreads ideas about the healthy subjectivities— gendered identities and behaviors—those medicines are prescribing. This, we feel, calls for further critical consideration to articulate the prescribed social practices that prescription medicines carry.