BioCentury
ARTICLE | Strategy

Tekturna con and pro

May 28, 2007 7:00 AM UTC

Tekturna aliskiren from Novartis AG and Speedel AG already faces an uphill marketing battle in the hypertension space, as the first-in-class renin inhibitor has a higher price tag than the slew of generic medicines in the field. Recently, Tekturna was challenged on the clinical side, as researchers at Cornell University's Weill Medical College wrote in the American Journal of Hypertension that the drug's efficacy is no different than that of older hypertension drugs, and recommended sticking with the cheaper generics.

Speedel, however, maintains that Tekturna's selling proposition rests on its long half-life and lack of blood pressure rebound effects once treatment is stopped. ...