Content about Pharmacology

WASHINGTON — Nearly 98% of primary care physicians, nurse practitioners and pharmacists trust and recommend over-the-counter medicines to their patients, according to a new survey released Wednesday by the Consumer Healthcare Products Association. Nearly three-fourths of primary care physicians recommend OTC medicines to relieve symptoms before recommending a prescription treatment.

HYDERABAD, India — Generic drug maker Dr. Reddy's Labs has launched a drug used to treat certain cancers, the company said Tuesday.

Dr. Reddy's announced the launch of injectable zoledronic acid in the 4-mg-per-5-mL strength. The launch followed the Food and Drug Administration's approval of the drug.

The drug is a generic version of Novartis' Zometa. The drug is used to treat cancers that have spread to the bones and multiple myeloma.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misstated the strength of the drug. The story has been corrected.

NEW YORK — The stakes are high in a case involving generic drug maker Actavis and the Federal Trade Commission that will soon go before the Supreme Court, the head of a generic drug industry lobbying group said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday.

The case, FTC v. Actavis, will go before the high court on March 25 and may decide the future of patent settlements between branded and generic drug companies. The Generic Pharmaceutical Association filed an amicus brief with the court last week defending the settlements as beneficial to consumers.

You might want to make a note of this. On paper. Despite all the hoopla surrounding electronically generated prescriptions, e-communications and digitized patient recordkeeping over the past decade, most doctors still prefer to write prescriptions the old fashioned way, by hand, scrawled on a prescription pad and handed to the patient.

PHILADELPHIA — The Food and Drug Administration has accepted a regulatory application for a new painkiller from Iroko Pharmaceuticals, the drug maker said Monday.

Iroko is seeking approval for a lower-dose, submicron diclofenac, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug for treating mild to moderate acute pain in adults.

NEW YORK — The Food and Drug Administration will inspect about 30 compounding pharmacies that it has deemed "high risk," according to published reports.

Businessweek reported that the FDA started visits to the pharmacies started last month and would continue for the next two months. So far, unsanitary conditions were found at pharmacies in Chicago, Florida, Arkansas and Mississippi.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will hear arguments later this month in a case that could determine the future of many patent settlements between brand and generic drug makers.

The high court will hear arguments in the case, Federal Trade Commission v. Actavis, on March 25. The case was originally titled FTC v. Watson, but has changed since Watson Pharmaceuticals changed its name following its acquisition of Swiss generic drug maker Actavis.

Canadian generic drug makers expressed dismay over a new plan to reduce reimbursements for a half-dozen generic medications in most of the country's provinces. According to published reports, a group of premiers had reached a coordinated deal to reduce the prices their governments paid for six generic drugs, hoping to save the provinces nearly $100 million.

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration has set user fee rates for generic drug companies, the agency said Jan. 27.

The FDA announced that it had published a notice in the Federal Register for companies that make finished dosage forms, meaning drugs in their final form, and active pharmaceutical ingredients, meaning the main ingredients of the drugs.

Has the explosion in generic utilization curbed pioneer-drug research and development? That's one concern floated by some pharmaceutical industry watchers, who claim that the stunning market share gains made by generic drug makers could reduce incentives for branded drug companies to spend to develop new molecular entities, conduct lengthy clinical trials, gain FDA approval and bring those new drugs to market.

Biosimilar medicines have been approved and routinely prescribed in Europe for nearly seven years, and creation of a clear pathway for Food and Drug Administration review and approval of generic versions of bioengineered drugs was enshrined into law in the United States with the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act nearly three years ago. But IMS Health and other industry experts agree it could still be years before biosimilars are available to pharmacies and patients in this country.