Last Wednesday, March 31st, the FDA announced that a newtreatment for varicose veinshas been approved. The generic name, polidocanol (marketed in the US as Asera) works by causing damage to the cell lining of the veins, which makes them close up and eventually disappear, replaced by other types of tissue. Asclera is designed and approved for veins smaller in diameter than 1 mm in diameter as well as reticular veins that are between 1 and 3 mm in diameter. (For Americans that's 1/24th to 1/8th of an inch).
There are three types of vein problems: varicose, spider and reticular. Spider veins are extremely small—you often get them around the ankles and sometimes on the upper thighs, as well as on the face. They can ache, burn and swell and spider veins on the legs can cause night cramps. Varicose veins are the most noticeable and are often located on the calves. Reticular veins are generally very mild and cause little discomfort. In our practice, sclerosing agents, such as the new Asclera, have been a treatment of choice along with laser treatments.
Were you around in 1975 when the Pepsi Challenge commercials were running? Everyday folks were blind-folded in the local grocery store and served 2 types of cola. They were amazed that they liked Pepsi better than Coke.
Well, the makers of Dysport, a competitor to Botox, have created their own version of this popular commercial. It’s called the Dysport Challenge. Now, our office doesn’t use Dysport, we love our Botox, so we aren’t in the challenge, but we wanted our readers to know about the lengths that cosmetic companies will go to to get their business!
Since Dysport was approved slightly more than a year ago by the FDA, it’s taken only 10% of Botox’s thunder in terms of marketshare. However, Allergan, the makers of Botox, were spooked enough to push more of their non-cosmetic Botox uses to the public, such as a treatment for migraines and excessive sweating. In fact, those non-cosmetic uses make up more than half of Botox’s annual revenues!
This kind of medical marketing has upset some medical ethicists. I’d be interested in knowing what you think about this kind of promotion? Is this no different than the battle of the colas or does this signal a trend that might invade even our more disease-oriented medications, like perhaps Lipitor vs Zocor?
