But it has agreed to pay $175m to settle a US antitrust case in which direct drug purchasers claimed the company had taken unfair steps to prevent cheaper competing versions of
Relafen.
NEW YORK -- GlaxoSmithKline has lost a contest over a generic version of
Relafen, its arthritis drug, but is now battling several generic drug manufacturers with charges they are using stolen trade secrets to produce generic versions of its antibiotic Augmentin.
(91) One drug that would have benefited from this extension was the top anti-arthritis drug
Relafen that had already grossed sales of $419 million.
NSAIDs Used To Treat Lupus(*) Generic Name Brand Name Ibuprofen Motrin, Advil Naproxen Naprosyn, Aleve Sulindac Clinoril Diclofenac Voltaren Piroxicam Feldene Ketoprofen Orudis Diflunisal Dolobid Nabumetone
Relafen Etodolac Lodine Oxaprozin Daypro Indomethacin Indocin (*) Brand names included in this fact sheet are provided as examples only and their inclusion does not mean that these products are endorsed by the National Institutes of Health or any other Government agency.
Drug Products Affected: - Claritin had sales of $1.9 billion in 1998,
Relafen had $450 million, and Daypro had $300 million.
The others are Eulexin, Nimotop,
Relafen, Dermatop, Penetrex, and Cardiogen-82.
Consider the case of nabumetone (brand name:
Relafen), a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), approved by the FDA for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis in 1992.
SmithKline's key drugs for the future are its Paxil/Seroxat antidepressant, which has been taking market share in a growing market from the leading new-generation antidepressant of this type, Eli Lilly & Co's Prozac; the boosted antibiotic Augmentin and the painkilling
Relafen.
They are nabumetone, marketed under the trade name
Relafen by Beecham Laboratories; oxaprozin, marketed in the United States under the name Durapro by G.D.
Diflunisal (Dolobid [R]) thrombocytopenia, Nabumetone(
Relafen [R]) leukopenia, Use of aspirin, Naproxen (Naprosyn [R]) bronchospasm, alcohol, or Piroxicam (Feldene [R]) nervousness, corticosteroids Indomethacin (Indocin [R]) tinnitus, may increase risk Sulindac (Clinoril [R]) hearing loss.
Since the beginning of 2001 Teva USA has introduced 19 products to the market, including nabumetone tablets, AB rated and bioequivalent to GlaxoSmithKline's
Relafen; metformin HCl tablets, AB rated and bioequivalent to Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s Glucophage; and lovastatin tablets, AB rated and bioequivalent to Merck & Co.'s Mevacor.
$1.45 sodium nabumetone 750-1,000 mg $2.42 (1,000 mg (
Relafen) once or twice daily once daily) naproxen 250-750 mg $2.30 (500 mg b.i.d.
Most recently, Teva USA received marketing exclusivity for nabumetone tablets, AB rated and bioequivalent to GlaxoSmithKline's
Relafen. Several more approvals are anticipated before the end of 2001.
