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Article: War among statins heats up.(Vytorin, cholesterol-lowering drug)
- Article from:
- Chain Drug Review
- Article date:
- August 30, 2004
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 Racher Press, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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NEW YORK -- Vytorin, a potent new cholesterol-lowering drug developed in a joint venture between Schering-Plough Corp. and Merck & Co., has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, increasing competition in the lucrative cholesterol drug market.
Vytorin is the first product approved to treat the two sources of cholesterol by inhibiting the production of cholesterol in the liver and also blocking its absorption in the intestine, including cholesterol from food.
The new drug combines Merck's Zocor and Schering-Plough's Zetia. The active ingredients in Vytorin are ezetimibe and simvastatin. It will be available in pharmacies in the near future.
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