Patent for Plavix extended for six months with PED

The FDA has granted Bristol-Myers Squibb and Sanofi-Aventis a six month extension in term of Pediatric extension to its OB listed patent no. 4847265 for Plavix (clopidogrel). The normal expiry was Nov 17, 2011 which after extension of six months now going to expire on May 17,2012. This extension was awarded for the study of Plavix in infants.

Plavix is one of the highly selling drug in US after Lipitor for the cardiovascualr disease. So now they can keep away the generic players from the markets for more six months.

Sanofi wins plavix case against Apotex

Sanofi-Aventis has finally received judgment in its favour in the lawsuit of patent for the block buster drug Clopidogrel (Plavix) against Apotex Inc. This judgement will give $442 million to Sanofi.

Sanofi filed its patent-infringement lawsuit against Apotex in 2002 and won a preliminary injunction against Apotex four years later. In a five-week bench trial in 2007, a judge found that Sanofi’s patent on Plavix, the world’s second biggest-selling drug, was valid and enforceable, and that Apotex violated the patent by making and distributing a generic form of the drug.

(Source: http://www.bloomberg.com)