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New blood pressure drug approved

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An injectable drug recently approved for the treatment of high blood pressure is the first new intravenous (IV) antihypertensive agent to come on the market in the last 10 years, according to bosses at the Medicines Company.

The firm has announced that its drug, the IV therapy Cleviprex (clevidipine butyrate), has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the reduction of blood pressure when oral therapy is not feasible or not desirable.

The injectable emulsion Cleviprex offers a rapid and precise control of blood pressure in the critical care setting, according to its makers.

Dr Robert Califf, professor of medicine at Duke University in the US said: “Recent clinical findings highlight the relationship between controlling acute blood pressure and lower risk of adverse outcomes.

“With the approval of Cleviprex, physicians have a new treatment option for intensive control of blood pressure that may advance the standard of care in the operating room, the intensive care unit and the emergency department.”

Cleviprex has a rapid onset and offset of action and can be titrated for precise blood pressure control. Unlike many current IV antihypertensive agents, which are metabolised by the kidney and/or liver, Cleviprex is metabolised in the blood and tissues and does not accumulate in the body.

Copyright PA Business 2008

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