PDF / 75 KB 
collectBayerNews_20080916_0376_en.pdf BayerNews_20080916_0376_en.pdf
Venous Blood Clot Prevention after Elective Total Knee and Hip Replacement Surgery:
First approval for Bayer's new oral, once-daily anticoagulant / Marketing to start immediately / First-in-class product to demonstrate superior efficacy to standard of care / Most studied oral, direct Factor Xa inhibitor in the world today
Leverkusen, Germany / Toronto, Canada, September 16, 2008 - Health Canada has
granted Bayer HealthCare marketing authorization for the anticoagulant Xarelto®
(rivaroxaban), taken as one tablet, once-daily, for the prevention of venous
thromboembolic events (VTE) in patients who have undergone elective total hip
or total knee replacement surgery. This decision marks the first approval for
Xarelto worldwide. Bayer will start marketing the product immediately.
"Xarelto, discovered in Bayer's Wuppertal laboratories in Germany, is a
first-in-class product and the only oral anticoagulant to demonstrate superior
efficacy over the standard of care, enoxaparin," said Arthur Higgins, CEO of
Bayer HealthCare. "The approval in Canada marks an important milestone for the
most extensively studied product of its class and Bayer HealthCare has achieved
a major step forward in establishing a new era in antithrombosis therapy."
"Xarelto has the potential to revolutionize how we prevent dangerous blood
clots after elective total hip or knee replacement surgery in Canada," said Dr.
A.G.G. Turpie, Professor of Medicine, McMaster University, Canada, and
Principal Investigator for the RECORD program. "The existing treatment
standards have limitations, so new therapies such as Xarelto can help doctors
to prevent the potentially lethal effects of venous blood clots."
The approval from Health Canada was based on data from the extensive RECORD
clinical program that included three Phase III trials of Xarelto involving
nearly 10,000 patients undergoing elective hip or knee replacement surgery
(RECORD1, 2 and 3 trials). Results from these three studies demonstrated the
superior efficacy of Xarelto, both in head-to-head comparisons with enoxaparin
(RECORD1 and 3), and when comparing extended-duration (5 weeks) Xarelto with
short-duration (2 weeks) enoxaparin (RECORD2). In all three trials, Xarelto and
enoxaparin had similar safety profiles including low rates of major bleeding.
Xarelto has also been recommended for approval by the European Committee for
Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) and Bayer expects the marketing
authorization across all EU-member states very soon.
About Venous Thromboembolism
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a serious life-threatening condition which
kills more people each year than breast cancer, AIDS, prostate cancer and
traffic accidents combined. Overall, it is estimated that there are 15,000 to
20,000 VTE cases in Canada annually.
During hip or knee replacement procedures, the large veins of the leg that
carry blood back to the heart are damaged which significantly increases the
risk of VTE for patients undergoing such major orthopedic surgery. In fact,
venous blood clots occur in 40-60% of patients undergoing major orthopedic
surgery who do not receive preventative care. In 2005-2006, there were nearly
69,000 hospitalizations for hip and knee replacements in Canada alone.
To learn more about VTE please visit www.thrombosisadviser.com.
About Xarelto® (rivaroxaban)
The extensive clinical trial program supporting Xarelto makes it the most
studied oral, direct Factor Xa inhibitor in the world today. Almost 50,000
patients are expected to be enrolled into the Xarelto clinical development
program which will evaluate the product in the prevention and treatment of a
broad range of acute and chronic blood-clotting disorders including VTE
treatment, stroke prevention in patients with atrial fibrillation, VTE
prevention in hospitalized, medically ill patients and secondary prevention of
acute coronary syndrome.
Xarelto was recently submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
On approval, Ortho-McNeil, a Division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals,
Inc., will market the drug in the United States. In addition to the FDA
submission, filings are under review with regulatory agencies in more than 10
other countries.
Xarelto was invented in Bayer's Wuppertal laboratories in Germany, and is being
jointly developed by Bayer HealthCare and Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical
Research & Development, L.L.C.
About Bayer HealthCare
The Bayer Group is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of
health care, nutrition and high-tech materials. Bayer HealthCare, a subsidiary
of Bayer AG, is one of the world's leading, innovative companies in the
healthcare and medical products industry and is based in Leverkusen, Germany.
The company combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Consumer Care,
Diabetes Care and Pharmaceuticals divisions. The pharmaceuticals business
operates under the name Bayer Schering Pharma. Bayer HealthCare's aim is to
discover and manufacture products that will improve human and animal health
worldwide. Find more information at www.bayerhealthcare.com.
Bayer Schering Pharma is a worldwide leading specialty pharmaceutical company.
Its research and business activities are focused on the following areas:
Diagnostic Imaging, General Medicine, Specialty Medicine and Women's
Healthcare. With innovative products, Bayer Schering Pharma aims for leading
positions in specialized markets worldwide. Using new ideas, Bayer Schering
Pharma aims to make a contribution to medical progress and strives to improve
the quality of life. Find more information at www.bayerscheringpharma.de.
