FDA APPROVES NEW DRUG THAT PREVENTS BLOOD CLOTS

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, April 15, 1993                   TAG: 9304150165
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short
FDA APPROVES NEW DRUG THAT PREVENTS BLOOD CLOTS
The Food and Drug Administration approved a new drug Wednesday that can prevent potentially fatal blood clots after hip replacement surgery.
The drug, enoxaparin, can prevent pulmonary embolisms. It will be sold by Rhone-Poulene Rorer Inc. under the brand name Lovenox.
The agency cleared the drug after a priority review.
The manufacturer said a clinical trial indicated the drug could save 16 lives per 1,000 patients treated. Surgeons perform nearly 250,000 hip replacements in elderly patients each year.
The company said the average wholesale price for a seven-day course of treatment is $161. The drug first went on the market in Europe six years ago. - Associated Press

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB