Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. has introduced its  Nicardipine Hydrochloride Injection, 2.5 mg/mL, in the United States of America. The injection is the first alternative to EKR Therapeutics’ treatment for high blood pressure, Cardene® I.V. According to IMS sales data, this product had annual sales of approximately $181 million in the United States from July 2007 to June 2008. As part of an agreement that Teva and Exela PharmSci, Inc. (a Reston, Virginia based company developing pharmaceuticals), entered into, Teva is licensed to manufacture and distribute the  Nicardipine HCl Injection.

The European Commission has granted marketing authorisation for the new powerful strength of Boehringer Ingelheim’s fixed dose combination antihypertensive drug, MicardisPlus® 80/25, in all 27 EU member states. The company plans to launch the drug in Germany and Denmark in the forthcoming weeks, followed soon by Ireland, the UK and the rest of the EU. The product is licensed for the treatment of essential hypertension in patients whose blood pressure is not adequately controlled on MicardisPlus® 80/12.5 (80 mg telmisartan/12.5 mg hydrochlorothiazide) or patients who have been previously stabilized on telmisartan and hydrochlorothiazide separately at the same dosages.