Patanol is indicated for the treatment of the signs and symptoms of allergic conjunctivitis, including itching, redness, chemosis, tearing and lid swelling.
The lawsuit was filed following Apotex’s filing of an abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) seeking approval for manufacturing and selling of a generic version of Alcon‘s Patanol prior to the expiration of US patent number 5,641,805, which is jointly owned by Alcon and Kyowa.
The US court decision, which is subject to appeal, defends Alcon’s intellectual property rights until the Patanol patent expires in 2015.
Alcon Global Marketing vice president Stuart Raetzman said Alcon invested many years and millions of dollars in the discovery and development of an ocular allergy product that would stabilize mast cells in the eye and provide long-term relief of the signs and symptoms of ocular allergies.
"Patanol was the result of this R&D effort and today´s court decision is an important milestone to defend Alcon´s intellectual property rights," Raetzman said.