Feature

The Science of O

But if the Eros-CTD is not necessarily the be-all and end-all, the good news is its lack of side effects. Which brings us back to the Viagra-type creams. "My own feeling is that women have to contend with a lot to enjoy their sexuality," says Sandra Leiblum. "So anything that can be helpful for women in terms of getting past their inhibitions should be encouraged."

"If you give these medications topically to women, that should enhance blood flow," says Barbara Bartlik, who also enlists a pharmacist to mix creams for her patients. "And where you have greater engorgement, you have greater pleasure, greater sensation, greater lubrication. It stands to reason. So I think that we're on the verge of something."

Janet, Kaminetsky's patient, is a suburban woman with school-age children who says the Dream Cream helps her keep pace with her husband, particularly after they've been drinking. "When I drink, I get less sensation, I get numb," Janet says, "so although I'm less inhibited and enjoy sex on that level, on a purely sensation-based level I find it less than perfect. When the cream works, what happens is you can feel more. All your sensations are heightened."

"I've always been very orgasmic and sexual," says Stacy, another patient of Kaminetsky's. "When I started going through menopause, I noticed a decrease in my libido, and an inability to have an orgasm during sex. I had to resort to a vibrator." Stacy has used Dream Cream three times, and had orgasms during sex two out of the three. "It's amazing," she gushes. "It's like the old days. I'm going to use it every single time."

For his part, Kaminetsky may soon be as popular as the Beatles. A bunch of women recently flew up from Palm Beach to visit him, "one friend and then the next friend, who had these 75-year-old husbands and needed a little help," Kaminetsky recalls, grinning. He's also something of a favorite among the nurses in the operating room -- who are more than happy to test new Dream Cream formulas in the name of science -- and among the soccer moms of Greenwich, where he lives with his wife and three children.

Sitting across the desk from Kaminetsky, I ask him if he read a recent article in Esquire about a woman -- also popular -- who road-tested vibrators and other sex toys as part of her job.

Kaminetsky narrows his eyes and smiles coyly at me. "You're not test-driving -- "

"No," I stammer. "No, I'm not."

He leans back in his chair. "Well, if you want to try it . . ." He bends over and rummages through a drawer, emerging with a small syringe-type tube. He passes it -- still grinning -- across the desk.