Usage of Zyvox Has Flattened or Declined in the Major European Markets While Uptake of Cubicin and Tygacil Has Climbed Yea

MRSA Infections are a Key Driver of Zyvox and Cubicin Usage, According to New Report from Arlington Medical Resources

EXTON, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Arlington Medical Resources (AMR), a provider of premier market intelligence for the pharmaceutical and diagnostic imaging industries, reports that in Europe, Pfizer’s Zyvox is the most frequently prescribed branded product to patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, excluding Italy where Cubist/Novartis’s Cubicin is the leading branded MRSA therapy. However, use of Zyvox has flattened or declined in the EU5 (France, Italy, Germany, Spain, United Kingdom), while uptake of Cubicin and Pfizer’s Tygacil has steadily increased in the last five years.

AMR’s soon-to-publish report entitled Hospital Insight Series: MRSA Infections (Europe) also finds that MRSA infections are a key driver of Zyvox and Cubicin usage as evidenced by data showing that approximately one-third of hospital use of these drugs is attributable to the treatment of patients with a confirmed MRSA infection.

The report findings reveal that 40 percent of physicians in the EU5 indicate they are using increasingly higher doses of vancomycin to treat MRSA infections; ID specialists most often cite decreased susceptibility to vancomycin and the need to effectively manage complicated and difficult-to-treat infections as the main reasons to “push” dosing of vancomycin. Together with the need to monitor vancomycin drug levels, a physician-reported weakness of vancomycin, these perceived shortcomings of vancomycin drive the uptake of alternative therapies in Europe. The analysis finds that Zyvox tends to be the preferred alternative therapy for MRSA patients with hospital-acquired pneumonia or complicated skin and skin structure infections (cSSSIs) who are not successfully treated with vancomycin while Cubicin is the vancomycin alternative in patients with MRSA bacteremia.

“ID specialists are continuing to rely heavily on Zyvox and Cubicin in MRSA patients, particularly those with cSSSIs, while many physicians report that they are beginning to decrease their use of vancomycin for this and other infections,” said Dr. Perez-Cheeks. “In addition, increased physician comfort with Zyvox and Cubicin along with the addition of these drugs to hospital MRSA guidelines are key reasons clinicians have increased usage of these products in the last year.”

Physician awareness of emerging therapies including Theravance/Astellas’s telavancin, Forest/AstraZeneca’s ceftaroline, Durata’s dalbavancin, Nabriva’s BC-3781 and Trius/Bayer’s torezolid (tedizolid) varies widely with few physicians citing awareness of BC-3781 and torezolid. Of these new therapies, telavancin is the furthest along in development in Europe. However, despite the availability of telavancin in the United States since 2009, its recent EMA approval and a continuous stream of data publications, only half of EU5 infectious disease specialists indicate being aware of the drug.

“Among European infectious disease specialists who are aware of telavancin, there is concern across the board about its potential to cause or exacerbate renal impairment,” said Dr. Perez-Cheeks. “Requisite monitoring of telavancin-treated patients for impaired kidney function will likely be a barrier to uptake of the drug.”

About AMR

AMR (www.AMR-data.com) serves the market intelligence needs of the pharmaceutical and diagnostic imaging industries. Research includes clinical inpatient databases that directly link anti-infective drug with indication/procedure, formulary and stocking status tracking studies, drug purchasing audits and diagnostic imaging procedure volume/contrast media usage audits. AMR is a Decision Resources Group company.

About Decision Resources Group

Decision Resources Group is a cohesive portfolio of companies that offers best-in-class, high-value information and insights on important sectors of the healthcare industry. Clients rely on this analysis and data to make informed decisions. Please visit Decision Resources Group at www.DecisionResourcesGroup.com.

All company, brand or product names contained in this document may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.



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Lisa Osgood, 781-993-2606
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Christopher Comfort, 781-993-2597
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