Women who participated in a trial for testing out the female version of Viagra reported more satisfying sexual encounters, including a higher libido.

Depending on their age and whether they have undergone menopause, between 9% and 26% of women experience low libido or reduced sexual desire.

However, the arrival of Viagra for men over a decade ago; made it a billion-dollar global blockbuster, the Holy Grail of drug manufacturers. And now, a major clinical trial of an equivalent that works wonders for women, or the drug described as the'female Viagra' has proven its ability to boost sexual desire in women with flagging libidos.

Originally, the female version of Viagra for men was developed as an anti-depressant, but turned out to be a poor one. Questionnaires given to patients helped discover the drug possessed libido-boosting side effects, and many of the women who participated in the trial seemed reluctant to give back the drug. It is possible that within 18-months, the drug could get approval for use in Great Britain.

Viagra for men was originally meant to be a treatment for high blood pressure and the heart condition angina. As with the women, men taking part in early trials of the drug realised it had an interesting side effect. Arriving in 1998, the drug has since been prescribed for over 25-million men and has created a multi-billion pound global market.

During the six-month trial, women given the drug reported more satisfying sexual encounters and higher libidos than those given placebos, and could prove to be an effective treatment for low libidos, according to doctors involved in the study.

However, the drug has proven controversial amongst sex researchers, with some arguing pharmaceutical companies are exaggerating the number of women affected by low libidos, simply as a market expansion ploy by pushing a pill unable to deal with psychological issues responsible for putting someone off sex e.g. poor body image or stress.

Nearly 2,000 pre-menopausal women aged 18 participated in the study, after they were diagnosed with 'hypoactive sexual desire disorder', a condition characterised by a very low libido for long stretches of time.

A daily 100-mg dose of the drug called flibanserin, saw the women reporting having had satisfying sex, more often than those on placebos. Subjects who before the trial reported an average of 2.8 satisfying sexual events per month, after taking flibanserin daily saw the number of satisfying sexual events rise to 4.5-times a month, as compared to a 3.7-times rise for those taking placebo.

However, Petra Boynton, a healthcare researcher at University College London warns, the pill is not a 'magic bullet' and could prevent couples from thrashing out their underlying issues.

There are some side-effects to the drug also, such as, dizziness, nausea, drowsiness and insomnia.