Sankyo Co., Ltd. (President: TetsuoTakato) and Ube Industries, Ltd. (President Kazumasa Tsunemi) announced that Calblock® tablets in 8 mg and 16 mg strengths (generic name: azelnidipine) are available for sale as of May 20. Calblock is a long-acting calcium antagonist jointly developed by the two companies.
Calblock® is a dihydropyridine calcium antagonist, the most common type of calcium antagonist today, which gradually achieves sustained results over a long period of time. Taking one Calblock® tablet a day achieves lower blood pressure for 24 hours.
Due to their excellent blood pressure-lowering effects and high tolerability, dihydropyridine calcium antagonists are now the leading antihypertensive agents in Japan. Among the available medicines, these long-acting calcium antagonists offer gradual and sustained results and are used by the greatest number of patients, who consider them ideal in terms of safety and the protection of the heart.
However, even the long-acting calcium antagonists are known to occasionally cause the adverse effect of slightly increasing the heart rate. Calblock® tablets are known to have a relatively small effect on the heart rate over a long period of use, and are thought to cause even less strain on the heart than previously available medicines.
Sankyo and Ube Industries are introducing this product to the market with great care, and are committed to continuing to study its effects after its introduction, to confirm its safety in clinical use after sale.
| Medicine Name | Long-acting calcium antagonist [Designated drugs, Prescription legend drugs] |
|---|---|
| Product Name | CalBlock tablets 8 mg CalBlock tablets 16mg (azelnidipine tablets) |
| Packaging | 8 mg tablets: 100 tablets (PTP), 500 tablets (PTP) 16 mg tablets: 100 tablets (PTP), 500 tablets (PTP), 700 tablets (PTP) |
| Standard Drug PricePer Unit | 8 mg tablets: 50.30 yen/ 8 mg tablet 16 mg tablets: 90.00 yen/ 16mg tablet [Announced April 1, 2003] |
| Composition | 8 mg tablets: Each tablet contains 8.0 mg of azelnidipine. 16 mg tablets: Each tablet contains 16.0 mg of azelnidipine. |
| Indications | Hypertension |
| Dosage | The normal dose for an adult is 8-16 mg of azelnidipine once daily, taken orally after breakfast. The maximum dosage is 16 mg/day. The initial dosage is to be 8 mg/day or less, to be adjusted as symptoms are monitored, up to 16 mg daily. |
| Remarks | Manufacture and sales: Sankyo Co., Ltd. Technical cooperation: Ube Industries, Ltd. |
