SOLVAY PHARMACEUTICALS announces today that Meiji Seika Kaisha Ltd. (Tokyo) and Solvay Seiyaku K. K. (Tokyo) obtained approval of additional indication of Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia) from Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare on fluvoxamine maleate (DEPROMEL®/ Meiji Seika, LUVOX®/ Solvay Seiyaku) on October 11.
In Japan, it was developed by Meiji Seika and Solvay Seiyaku, and launched as the first SSRI in the Japanese market in 1999 under brand names DEPROMEL® by Meiji Seika and LUVOX® by Astellas Pharma Inc. (appointed distributor for Solvay Seiyaku) for treatment of “depression and depressive state” and “obsessive compulsive disorder”.
Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is a disorder with which patients suffer excessive anxiety in meeting people, speaking out their own opinions, making phone calls in front of people, eating in public, etc. and they avoid these situations ending up having problems in their daily lives. Also, patients with SAD may develop further disorder such as depression or alcohol dependency to suppress such anxiety. Fluvoxamine maleate is expected to improve quality of lives of SAD patients by eliminating fear and anxiety, to suppress symptoms such as sweating and shivering, and to reduce avoidance behaviour linked to such fear and anxiety.
SOLVAY is an international chemical and pharmaceutical group with headquarters in Brussels. It is present in more than 50 countries and employs some 33,000 people in its Chemicals, Plastics and Pharmaceuticals activities. Including Fournier Pharma, its 2004 sales amounted to EUR 8.5 billion. Solvay is listed on the Euronext 100 index of top European companies. Details are available at www.solvay.com.
SOLVAY PHARMACEUTICALS is the pharmaceuticals entity of Solvay. It is a research driven pharmaceutical company that seeks to fulfill carefully selected, unmet medical needs in the therapeutic areas of cardiology, gastroenterology, mental health and gynecology/andrology. Solvay Pharmaceuticals employs about 13,000 people worldwide (with Fournier Pharma).
SOLVAY SEIYAKU is a Japanese entity of Solvay Pharmaceuticals. It is committed to develop and supply better medicines with high quality to those who suffer illnesses mainly in mental health, cardiology, gastroenterology, and gynecology fields.
