It seems Queen Levitra came on too strong some of the time.

Associated Press The star of television ads for the erectile dysfunction drug has been dubbed "Queen Levitra" by The Wall Street Journal. Click photo for larger image.

The Food and Drug Administration has asked maker Bayer Pharmaceutical Corp. and its marketing partners to pull the 15-second version of the "My Man" television ads that promote the erectile dysfunction drug Levitra.

The ads feature an attractive woman -- dubbed "Queen Levitra" by The Wall Street Journal -- who describes how the drug provides a "quality experience."

The FDA said the ad in question failed to include certain safety information and made a misleading assertion about how Levitra compares with other drugs in the same class.

The FDA called on Pfizer Inc. to pull ads for Viagra in September because of similar concerns.

While the short version of the Levitra ad is being pulled, a 45-second version will remain on the air, said Matthew Scampoli, spokesman for the drug company Schering-Plough Corp., which handles the U.S. marketing of the drug in conjunction with GlaxoSmithKline. He said the companies will take the FDA's guidance into consideration when developing future Levitra ads.

Losing the 15-second "reminder ad" is less of a blow because those ads are aimed at doctors who are already familiar with the product and the ailment, said Julie Donohue, a researcher who studies pharmaceutical advertising at the University of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public Health.

Longer ads are geared toward general consumers with a goal of encouraging them to discuss erectile dysfunction with their doctors, Donohue said.

Physicians tend to be reluctant to spontaneously raise the topic during an office visit, she added.

The impact of FDA's action likely will be blunted by another factor: The "My Man" campaign wasn't long for this world, anyway.

A Glaxo official said in January that the campaign would be "refreshed" this spring, and Marie Silvia, the actress who stars in the ad, said last month she wouldn't appear in new Levitra ads.

Direct-to-consumer advertising has been very important to the erectile dysfunction market. Between January and October 2004, drug companies spent $343 million in advertising for Viagra, Levitra and Cialis, an erectile dysfunction drug made by Eli Lilly and Icos.

Industry observers say the abundance of advertising in the United States explains why so many drugs sell here compared with the relatively weak erectile dysfunction market in Europe, where direct-to-consumer ads aren't allowed.

Even so, growth in sales for erectile dysfunction drugs in the United States has disappointed companies.

Total sales for the five drugs in the class during 2004 was $1.36 billion, according to IMS Health, up only $100 million from 2003 despite the introduction of Levitra and Cialis. Bayer's Levitra generated about $128 million in sales last year, third in its class.

Glaxo, whose consumer health care division is based in Moon, collaborated with Robinson-based Bayer Corp.'s German parent on Levitra.