Doctors on Tyneside have used Viagra as a last resort to save a baby's life.
The baby, Lewis Goodfellow was born at 24 weeks weighing just one and a half pounds. One of his lungs had failed and he was not able to get enough oxygen into his bloodstream.
Doctors at Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary finally tried Sildenafil, also known under the trade name of Viagra, and Lewis is now home with his parents.
The drug worked by opening up tiny blood vessels in his lungs.
His parents, from Walker, Newcastle believe the Viagra - normally associated with anti-impotence - saved his life.
At one point they were so concerned he would not survive that they began planning a funeral.
His mother told reporters:
"Doctors said he couldn't be given any more oxygen.
"They were just clutching at straws basically. They explained it was experimental and may not have any effect at all."
A consultant neonatologist at the hospital, said: "The problem we see in premature babies with breathing difficulties is although we can blow oxygen into their lungs to help them, there isn't enough blood supply to various areas of the lungs to take the oxygen around the rest of the body.
"What Sildenafil does is open up the blood vessels so they can capture the oxygen and take it around the body."
Lewis was born in August 2006 and was finally allowed home in January, to the delight of his parents.
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