asthma

AZ stock falls on Symbicort patent loss

Wed, 07 May 2008 06:59:56 -0400

What a difference one patent ruling can make. AstraZeneca lost almost $1.3 billion in market value today after announcing that the European Patent Office yanked a patent covering its blockbuster asthma med Symbicort. Another Symbicort patent still stands, but it's under attack by generics makers, too.

That difference may be a short-term thing, though. At least one analyst thinks that the patent ruling--which affects Symbicort as a COPD treatment--won't have much effect on product sales. For its part, AstraZeneca says inhaled generics take longer to get to market--because they require a delivery device in addition to the drug itself, and in this case the delivery device has its own patent. Plus, patients switch to the copycat forms of these meds more slowly than with tablet meds.

- see AstraZeneca's release
- read the item in the Manchester Evening News
- check out the AFX story

FDA nixes Merck, Schering allergy combo

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 06:59:56 -0400

In another blow to the Merck/Schering-Plough joint venture, the FDA rejected a proposed allergy and asthma treatment that would have combined Schering's Claritin and Merck's Singulair into one pill. In announcing the "not-approvable" letter from the FDA, the two companies wouldn't say why the med was rejected or whether the venture intends to resubmit.

Claritin was a heavy-hitter drug for Schering until it went off-patent and over-the-counter. Singulair, of course, is among Merck's best-sellers, with $4.3 billion in 2007 sales. The combo wasn't expected to be a home run, but losing the opportunity to sell it at all will no doubt cost millions. So why not try again? "We're still looking at it, and still evaluating the future of the joint venture as well," a Schering spokesperson said.

Evaluating the future of the joint venture, you say? Inquiring minds want to know whether that last phrase was just a throwaway comment--or a harbinger of change.

- check out the Schering press release
- see the item at PharmaGossip
- read the Associated Press story

Incontinence meds may impair thinking

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 06:59:55 -0400

Commonly used incontinence drugs may cause memory problems in older people, according to a new study funded by the National Institute on Aging. "Our message is to be careful when using these medicines," lead researcher Dr. Jack Tsao said. "It may be better to use diapers and be able to think clearly than the other way around."

The study, presented at the American Academy of Neurology meeting, began after researchers heard anecdotal reports of hallucinations and memory problems in patients who'd recently started incontinence meds. They organized a study, tracking a group of 870 patients for eight years, measuring cognitive ability yearly. Nearly 80 percent of the participants took anticholinergic meds, including asthma, Parkinson's, and incontinence drugs. Those using these meds had a 50 percent faster rate of cognitive decline compared with those who didn't--even when other risk factors were taken into consideration. The incontinence meds were among the most potent and commonly used in the study, the researchers said.

Pfizer's incontinence drug Detrol already has confusion and memory impairment listed among the side effects on its label. The company said that patients should always tell their doctors about any problems they experience while taking medication. "[T]he frequency (of cognitive problems) and the role of Detrol in their causation cannot be reliably determined," a spokesman said.

- read the Los Angeles Times story

SPOTLIGHT: FDA asks for data on asthma meds

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 06:59:52 -0500

The FDA has asked the makers of several beta agonist drugs for more data from clinical trials so it can "further evaluate the safety" of the drugs when used to treat asthma. Once the data is collected, the agency will convene an advisory panel to evaluate the safety risks. Back in 2005, FDA alerted healthcare professionals and patients that the drugs might increase the risk of worsened wheezing in some patients. Release

NIH unveils new asthma guidelines

Thu, 30 Aug 2007 06:59:57 -0400

New asthma treatment guidelines could be good news for drug companies. The government advises better day-to-day control of the disease--and that probably means more widespread use of inhaled corticosteroid drugs such as Flovent (GlaxoSmithKline), Azmacort (Sanofi-Aventis), and Pulmicort (AstraZeneca).

For patients with severe asthma, the National Institutes of Health report also recommends Omalizumab, a Genentech/Novartis drug sold under the brand name Xolair, which targets antibodies that can cause asthma symptoms.

- see the new NIH guidelines
- read the Washington Post's take
- and check out this piece on AstraZeneca's asthma drugs

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