OTC TAVIST SHOWS RAPID GROWTH

A booming market for over-the-counter allergy remedies is expected to provide particular benefit for Sandoz' Tavist-1 (clemastine), which went OTC in the USA in October 1992. Tavist-1, and the cough-cold remedy Tavist-D which is also available OTC, rapidly achieved $32.5 million in sales during their first three months on the US market.

According to a report in Advertising Age (March 22), Kline & Co is predicting that Tavist-1 will quickly move into second place in the OTC allergy sector, behind Warner-Lambert's Benadryl (diphenhydramine). Currently, Benadryl has 25.4% of the market, American Home Products' Dimetapp (brompheniramine maleate, phenylephrine HCl and phenylpropanolamine HCl) is second with 16%, Schering AG's ChlorTimeton (chlorpheniramine maleate) has 12.3%, and Tavist is fourth with 11.4%.

Tavist has benefited from bad press surrounding Marion Merrell Dow's Seldane (terfenadine), specifically drug interactions which can cause serious side effects (Marketletter July 13, 1992). This had been tipped to be a major success when launched OTC, but the company has said it will not pursue a switch at the moment. Nevertheless, Seldane is competing, largely because of heavy direct-to-consumer advertising suggesting consumers visit their doctors for prescription. It is already a $500 million-a-year product.