ArabianBusiness.com - Middle East Business News
Saturday, 22 November 2008 11:26 UAE time

YOUR DIRECTORY /

Print this page Print this page | Email this to a friend Email this to a friend | Discuss this article (1 Comments) |

Twin target for obesity drug

by ArabianBusiness.com staff writer  on Tuesday, 04 December 2007

Obesity drug rimonabant is to be resubmitted to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a treatment for diabetes, Medical Times has learnt.

Sanofi-Aventis' medical director for Gulf countries, Dr Hisham Mahmoud, said the firm hoped to secure the new indication within the next 18 months.

"At the end of 2008 or the beginning of 2009 it will be resubmitted to the FDA as a drug for diabetics," announced Mahmoud. "Its prime clinical function will no longer be for weight loss."

Story continues below
advertisement

If the application is successful, volumes are likely to swell among the Middle East's diabetic population. The drug is already available for prescription in several GCC countries as an approved obesity treatment.

Rimonabant is the first CB1 receptor blocker to be approved for use anywhere in the world, but was rejected by the FDA due to concerns over suicidality, depression and other related side effects associated with use of the drug.

Print Print | Email Email | Discuss this article |


READERS' COMMENTS



Click here to post a comment


Add your Comment
All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *
(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments
Security Code * Code


Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.


MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM

From  Current Issue

 EMAIL ALERTS

  1. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

  2. Healthcare


EMIRATES ID DOWNLOAD

READER COMMENTS

Read all user comments >

BUSINESS FEATURES

Mercy mission

Dubai-based doctors are operating for free on Arab and African children in need of medical care.

Trading in transplants

Organ transplantation may be a life saving procedure, but it is feeding a sinister black market.

Medical tourism: A hit and myth affair

Health tourism is still an unmapped market and capturing a slice of it may be tougher than the UAE thinks.

BUSINESS INTERVIEWS

Restoration nation

Dr Gerhard Kultermann highlights the non-metal restoration revolution.

Trading places

A would-be Dubaiite dentist about the trials and tribulations of sourcing a job in the emirate.

Bleach culture

Bleaching kits are everywhere. Middle East Dentist reveals how to keep your practice ahead of the competition.

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM