Drug Combo Reduces Heart Deaths

NOTTINGHAM, England – A study of 13,000 patients in Saturday’s British Medical journal reports that a combination of three types of heart treatments can reduce the number of deaths in heart patients by 83 percent. This suggests that combining blood-thinning aspirin, blood pressure-lowering beta blockers, and cholesterol-lowering statins is more effective than treatment with any one type of drug alone. The authors from the University of Nottingham suggest that a combination pill would benefit heart patients.

FTC Wants More Info on Deal

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona – Medicis Pharmaceutical’s plan to acquire Inamed by the end of the year is falling under further scrutiny from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The FTC has requested additional information regarding antitrust issues related to the deal. This is the second time the government organization has requested information from both medical device companies regarding the pending pact. The FTC has extended the companies’ deadlines by 30 days to gather the information. In late March, Medicis made a bid for Santa Barbara, California-based Inamed in a proposed $2.8-billion deal (see Aesthetic Medicine Makeover). In mid-April, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel recommended that Inamed’s silicone breast implants remain off the U.S. market (see FDA Panel OKs Implants). Shares of Inamed rose $0.66 to $61.55 in recent trading while Medicis shares fell $0.30 to $28.02.

Merck’s Marketing Questioned

WASHINGTON – Merck came under fire Thursday when U.S. lawmakers said internal company documents show that Merck’s salespeople may have misled doctors about the safety of the arthritis drug Vioxx. The House Government Reform Committee heard that Merck’s sales representatives were supposed to refer to a cardiovascular card when doctors asked about the drug’s safety. However, it did not include information about the original study, which suggested Vioxx could cause heart problems. The card is described in a company memo to sales reps as “an obstacle handling piece.” Questions over Vioxx’ safety first appeared in 2000 and the FDA added warnings to the drug’s label in 2002. Sales of Vioxx soared to $2.5 billion in 2003. Merck currently faces more than 2,400 lawsuits claiming damages from Vioxx’ side-effects.

siRNA Library Coming

LAFAYETTE, Colorado – Dharmacon, a supplier of biochemical products, has stuck a deal with Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Millennium Pharmaceuticals to supply the first siRNA collection targeting genes across the human genome. siRNA stands for short-interfering RNA, a category of molecules called nucleic acids that are often used in research to identify genes involved in biological pathways by knocking out their effects in the cell. Dharmacon says the new library will cover approximately 22,000 human genes.