Schering Plough ‘starts landmark allergic rhinitis study’

Schering-Plough has announced that it will be conducting new trials in the study of allergic rhinitis.

The multinational clinical study will investigate the efficacy of Aerius (desloratadine) as a treatment for patients with persistent and intermittent allergic rhinitis symptoms. Named Aerius Control: Clinical and Epidemiological Profile of Tablets, the trial will be conducted as a collaborative effort between the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (Ga2len).

Schering-Plough hopes that the trials will determine the efficacy, productivity, pharmacoeconomics and impact of quality on life for patients suffering from allergic rhinitis and using Aerius.

Allergic rhinitis, or hay fever, affects around 94 million people in Europe, with symptoms including sneezing, runny nose and itchy or watery eyes. Research also suggests that the allergies might have links to more serious conditions such as asthma.

Torsten Zuberbier, lead investigator on the Accept studies, commented: “The Accept trials are landmark studies which will help harmonise standards in the diagnosis and treatment of allergic rhinitis throughout Europe.

“These studies will examine practical use of the new ARIA guidelines and evaluate the impact of treatment with desloratadine for patients with intermittent allergic rhinitis or persistent allergic rhinitis.”

Aerius is currently used to treat allergic rhinitis in tablet and syrup form, with research suggesting that the drug provides “powerful morning symptom relief”.

A trial of 346 people suffering from moderate to severe seasonal allergic rhinitis showed that patients with Aerius had significant improvement in morning scores in comparison with placebo treatment for nasal and non-nasal treatment.

Recently Schering-Plough started a Phase I trail of a potential cancer drug that will make a cash milestone payment to Pharmacopeia Drug Discover, with further payments added if the programme advances.