LAGOS, Nigeria December 3, 2012/African Press Organization (APO)/ — MSD (http://www.merck.com), one of the world’s healthcare leaders, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, N.J., U.S.A., announced today the opening of its office in Lagos, Nigeria. The office in Nigeria will be managed by Kingsley Okeke, a Nigerian national, and his team of 18 employees. The opening of the office in Lagos underscores MSD’s commitment to expand its geographic footprint in Africa and to work closely with local stakeholders to address health challenges in Nigeria and neighboring West African countries such as Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Gambia and Equatorial Guinea.
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The opening of the office in Nigeria is in line with MSD’s new Africa strategy. At the core of this strategy is the strengthening of MSD’s presence within Africa, through the appointment of local health professionals who not only have an understanding of the environment and a respect for local customs, but also the passion to accelerate the public health agenda as defined by the governments. This includes contributing to creating jobs and transferring technical know-how, as well as the Company’s sustainable commitment to the community in which it operates.
“At MSD, our commitment is to get the right medicines to the right people in the right place, and we will achieve this by focusing on bringing medications and vaccines to Nigeria to address unmet medical needs,” says Kingsley Okeke, Commercial Director, MSD West Africa. “We have an excellent relationship with the Nigerian government and we have set ourselves the ambitious goal to be the number one health care partner in Nigeria in scaling up access to healthcare services and medicines.”
MSD’s product portfolio aligns well with local needs in Nigeria, where disease patterns are beginning to resemble those of the developed world: cardiovascular disease; asthma; diabetes, and infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS and hepatitis; as well as family planning and vaccines.
In recognition of World AIDS Day on December 1, MSD also announced today the launch of its innovative antiretroviral (ARV) medicine ATRIPLA® (efavirenz 600mg/emtricitabine 200 mg/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate 300mg) in Nigeria. Bringing ATRIPLA® to Nigeria is consistent with MSD’s commitment to register this innovative treatment for HIV broadly. ATRIPLA® is recommended in Nigeria Guidelines for the treatment of HIV.1
“Each of the components in ATRIPLA has been shown to be effective and has a well-established tolerability profile in HIV patients,” said Dr. Ernest Ekong, Director/Head, Department of Clinical Services, Institute for Human Virology of Nigeria (IHVN). “This one-pill-a-day treatment for HIV is already globally available and represents a simplification of dosing, which is important as patients remain on therapy longer.”
According to facts published by the HIV/AIDS Division of the Federal Ministry of Health in 2011, Nigeria reported its first case of AIDS in 1986 and since then there has been a strong focus from Government and other stakeholders on managing the burden of disease.2 “There are 3.4 million people in Nigeria living with HIV, 1.49 million requiring ARV therapy (1.3 million adults and 212,720 children), only 29.8% of eligible adults and children are on treatment and there is still a huge resource gap towards providing access to comprehensive HIV related services. We are glad to cooperate with MSD closely in the future to alleviate this burden,” said Dr. Patricia, Agaba, Honorary Consultant Family Physician, Department of Family Medicine, Jos University Teaching Hospital Nigeria.
Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc.
Important information about ATRIPLA®
In 2006, in partnership between MSD (known as Merck & Co., Inc. in the United States and Canada), Bristol-Myers Squibb and Gilead, a once-daily single-tablet regimen to simplify HIV treatment was developed and approved in the United States. ATRIPLA® (tenofovir, emtricitabine, efavirenz) is marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Gilead in the United States, Canada and Europe. MSD is responsible for registration and commercialization of ATRIPLA® in 113 developing countries around the world.
Select safety information for ATRIPLA®
Warnings and precautions
Serious psychiatric symptoms may occur and immediate medical evaluation is recommended. Dosing at bedtime may improve tolerability. New onset or worsening renal impairment can include acute renal failure and Fanconi syndrome. Assess creatinine clearance (CrCl) before initiating treatment with ATRIPLA. Monitor CrCl and serum phosphorus in patients at risk. Avoid administering ATRIPLA with concurrent or recent use of nephrotoxic drugs.
Pregnancy: Fetal harm can occur when administered to a pregnant woman during the first trimester. Women should be apprised of the potential harm to the fetus.
Rash: Discontinue if severe rash develops.
Hepatotoxicity: Monitor liver function tests before and during treatment in patients with underlying hepatic disease.
Decreases in bone mineral density (BMD): Consider monitoring BMD in patients with a history of pathological fracture or who are at risk for osteopenia.
Convulsions: Use caution in patients with a history of seizures.
Immune reconstitution syndrome: May necessitate further evaluation and treatment.
Adverse reactions
Most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥10%) observed in an active-controlled clinical study of efavirenz, emtricitabine, and tenofovir DF are diarrhea, nausea, fatigue, headache, dizziness, depression, insomnia, abnormal dreams, and rash.
Use in specific populations
– Pregnancy: Women should avoid pregnancy while receiving ATRIPLA and for 12 weeks after discontinuation.
– Nursing mothers: Women infected with HIV should be instructed not to breast feed.
– Hepatic impairment: Use caution in patients with hepatic impairment.
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Media Contact:
Kingsley Okeke
Commercial Director, MSD West Africa
+234 803624576
Antonia Lang
MSD EEMEA region
Communications Director,
+43 664 523 69 18
About MSD
Today’s MSD is a global healthcare leader working to help the world be well. MSD is a trade name of Merck & Co., Inc., with headquarters in Whitehouse Station, N.J., U.S.A. Through our prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, and consumer care and animal health products, we work with customers and operate in more than 140 countries to deliver innovative health solutions. We also demonstrate our commitment to increasing access to healthcare through far-reaching policies, programs and partnerships. For more information, visit http://www.merck.com and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
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This news release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about the benefits of the merger between Merck and Schering-Plough, including future financial and operating results, the combined company’s plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements that are not historical facts. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of
Merck’s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.
The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements: the possibility that all of the expected synergies from the merger of Merck and Schering-Plough will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period; the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation in the United States and internationally; Merck’s ability to accurately predict future market conditions; dependence on the effectiveness of Merck’s patents and other protections for innovative products; and the exposure to litigation and/or regulatory actions.
Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in Merck’s 2011 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company’s other filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC’s Internet site (www.sec.gov).
References:
1,2 : GLOBAL AIDS RESPONSE Country Progress Report Nigeria GARPR 2012
MSD IDEA Pharmaceuticals NIG. LTD (RC 1065476), 21 Adeniyi Jones Avenue, Ikeja Business District, Lagos.
E-mail: DPOC_SSA@merck.com.
Copyright © 2012 Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ U.S.A. All rights reserved.
ATRIPLA™ is a trademark of Bristol-Myers Squibb & Gilead Sciences,LLC. INFC-1062990-0000
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