Monday Dec 1, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- Got impotence and worse of all Viagra can’t help?   Researchers published a study in July 2008 suggesting that yohimbine, a compound found in a Chinese herb yobimbe, may be the drug you should try next.

Yobimbe has been used in Chinese medicine as an aphrodisiac for thousands of years.   Yohimbine found in yohimbe bark extract is known to increase blood flow to the penis and boosts an erection.   Because of this it is used to treat some types of impotence.

The study led by Senbel AM and Mostafa T of Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt showed that rats treated with sildenafil along with yohimbine increased their penetration frequency, intercourse frequency and the number of ejaculations per session.

In the rat study, the researchers administered sildenafil, Yohimbine or a combination of both intravenously and recorded changes in sexual arousal and copulatory performance indices and intracavernosal pressure/systemic arterial pressure (ICP/SAP) one and five minutes after treatments.

Sildenafil in a dose equal to or greater than 10 micromol/kg increased ICP/SAP significantly.  Yohimbine alone did not potentiate erectile responses but it in a dose of greater than or equal to 1 micromol/kg potentiated the effect of Sildenafil at doses of 1 to 10 micromol/kg one and five minutes after treatments.

They concluded "yohimbine may enhance and prolong the effect of sildenafil on erectile process without additional hypotension. Sildenafil may enhance the central effects of yohimbine on erection; it amplifies the effect of yohimbine on male copulatory performance but not on sexual motivation."