Ranbaxy inks pact with Ethypharm for Tramadol

Mumbai, May 24: Pharma major Ranbaxy Laboratories has entered into a strategic in-licensing agreement for the Indian market with Ethypharm LL India (Ethypharm), a wholly-owned subsidiary of a leading French drug delivery company, for the Novel Drug Delivery System (NDDS) analgesic, Tramadol 50 mg Flashtab.

Announcing this, the Company said the product will be supplied from Ethypharm's manufacturing facility near Mumbai, and marketed and distributed by the Company under its brand name ''Trambax''.

Tramadol is a drug of choice for severe to moderately severe pain in trauma cases and is currently one of the four most commonly prescribed analgesics worldwide. It is also used as an adjunct therapy in the treatment of cancer patients.

Tramadol Flashtab tablets melt rapidly in the mouth without water and combine several benefits in terms of acceptability, accuracy of dosing and safety. This inherent property of Flashtab is an advantage in the treatment of pain, since it can be consumed without water and hence can be used anywhere, anytime. Ranbaxy and Ethypharm aim to respond to the needs of patients and health authorities' for convenient medication by utilising the unique Flashtab technology.

Commenting on the agreement, Company regional director, India and Middle East, Mr Sanjeev I Dani said, ''The introduction of Trambax (Tramadol Flashtab) tablets is part of Ranbaxy's strategy to provide world-class products with NDDS technology to doctors in India for bringing rapid pain relief to their patients. This will further strengthen our portfolio in the pain management segment.'' Today, the Company is a market leader in India in the NDDS space with a basket of 30 products already on pharmacy shelves in the country.

This year, with the introduction of the NDDS product Trambax, the Company has so far launched two in-licenced products and has five more such products in the pipeline for launch during the year.

It is the Company's strategic intent to in-licence other value added NDDS products for the Indian market to supplement its own significant portfolio in this area. The Company's strong marketing and distribution network coupled with its own expertise in NDDS makes it a partner of choice for companies evaluating similar collaborative go-to-market arrangements.

UNI