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| |  TriCor, Micronized Fenofibrate, Now Available In U.S. For High Triglycerides ABBOTT PARK, IL -- June 2, 1998 -- Abbott Laboratories and Groupe Fournier’s TriCor(TM), a micronized form of the drug fenofibrate, is now available in the United States for patients with very high triglyceride levels. The drug is sold in 77 countries world-wide under the primary brand names Lipanthyl(R) and Lipidil(R). Abbott will market TriCor in the United States under a 1997 licensing. TriCor is available by prescription, in pharmacies U.S.-wide, in 67 mg capsules. In the U.S., TriCor is indicated, as an adjunct to diet, for the treatment of adults with very high serum triglyceride levels, specifically Types IV and V hyperlipidemia, with triglyceride elevations greater than 2,000 mg/dL, who are not appropriately controlled by diet alone and are at risk of pancreatitis. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial in a total of 92 patients with baseline triglyceride levels of 500 to 1,500 mg/dL, treated for eight weeks, TriCor reduced triglycerides by 55 percent versus an increase of seven percent with placebo. TriCor should not be used in patients with liver, gall bladder or severe kidney disease, or in patients who are allergic to the drug. TriCor has been associated with gallstones. Patients taking TriCor should have periodic liver function tests. Doses of coumarin-type anticoagulants should be adjusted and patients monitored while taking TriCor. The effect of TriCor on heart disease has not been established. The use of TriCor may occasionally be associated with breakdown of muscle tissue and muscle pain and should not be taken with HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statin medications). Patients complaining of muscle pain, tenderness or weakness should be evaluated promptly for serious side effects. "The introduction of TriCor in the United States means that physicians have an important new option to treat people with very high triglyceride levels," said Antonio Gotto Jr., M.D., D. Phil., The Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean, Cornell University Medical College. "To date, there have been a limited number of drugs that effectively treat this condition." Triglycerides are one form of fat circulating in blood, which, when highly elevated, are associated with pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas, resulting in severe abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting. In 1991 through 1992, there were 85 million office visits by patients with hyperlipidemia -- elevated levels of cholesterol and/or triglycerides. Hypertriglyceridemia – increased triglyceride levels -- affects roughly half of the patients with hyperlipidemia.
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