Inhaled Prostacyclin for PAH Patients

A new treatment for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in patients with class III or IV symptoms is an inhaled prostacyclin called Ventavis (iloprost inhalation solution). The drug has been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The cause of PAH may be unknown or may result from other diseases that cause a restriction of blood flow to the lungs, including scleroderma, HIV, or lupus. Symptoms include fatigue, shortness of breath on exertion, chest pain, and dizziness. Left untreated, the median survival time following diagnosis may be as short as three years.

Ventavis is currently marketed by Schering AG (Berlin, Germany) in several European countries and Australia. CoTherix, Inc. (South San Francisco, CA, USA) has licensed the exclusive rights from Schering to develop and commercialize Ventavis in the United States. In a clinical trial involving 203 patients, the response rate for the primary efficacy endpoint among PAH patients was 19% for patients treated with Ventavis, compared with 4% for the placebo-treated patients. All three components of the composite endpoint favored Ventavis.

"Making therapy easier to administer is critical to enhancing patient compliance and improving management of the disease,” said Lewis J. Rubin, M.D., professor of medicine and director, Pulmonary Hypertension Program at the University of California, San Diego (USA).



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Schering AG
CoTherix