Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Merck in News (29 April 2008)

Singulair: Merck & Co., Schering-Plough receive FDA not-approvable letter for combination allergy treatmentMerck & Co. and Schering-Plough announced that they received a not-approvable letter from the FDA for an allergy treatment that combines Merck’s Singulair (montelukast) with Schering-Plough’s Claritin (loratadine) in a single tablet.
The companies' joint venture, Schering-Plough/Merck Pharmaceuticals, indicated that it is evaluating the agency’s response but did not provide further details. Schering-Plough spokesperson Lisa Ellen added that “we’re…still evaluating the future of the joint venture as well.”

Fosamax increases risk of atrial fibrillation, study suggestsResults from a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggest that women taking Merck & Co.'s osteoporosis drug Fosamax (alendronate) had a higher risk of atrial fibrillation, compared with those who did not receive the drug.
In the study, researchers examined data from 719 women with a confirmed atrial fibrillation incident between October 2001 and December 2004, as well as data from 966 women without atrial fibrillation. Study lead researcher Susan Heckbert noted that the findings showed that "having ever used alendronate was associated with an 86-percent higher risk of newly detected atrial fibrillation compared with never having used the drug." Nonetheless, Heckbert commented that the benefits of bisphosphonates such as Fosamax generally outweigh the risks for patients at high risk of fractures.
In response, a spokesperson for Merck noted that a recent study published in the BMJ showed no evidence linking the use of bisphosphonates to an increased risk of atrial fibrillation

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