Brazil's atrial fibrillation market to grow at 31% annually over the next five years

The Brazilian market for atrial fibrillation will increase at a rate of 31% per year from 2011 to 2016, according to health care advisory firm Decision Resources’ The Emerging Markets report titled Atrial Fibrillation in Brazil, which finds that this dramatic growth will be fueled by an increased drug-treated population and the proliferation of treatment alternatives for stroke prophylaxis in atrial fibrillation.

According to surveyed Brazilian cardiologists, new branded oral anticoagulants, such as Boehringer-Ingelheim’s Pradaxa (dabigatran) and Bayer/Janssen’s Xarelto (rivaroxaban), will capture 79% of Brazil’s atrial fibrillation drug market in 2016, owing to their relatively high prices and superior clinical profiles over warfarin (Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Coumadin, generics) and aspirin.

Over the next five years, market growth will also be spurred by the launch of two novel antithrombotics - Bristol-Myers Squibb/Pfizer’s Eliquis (apixaban) and Daiichi-Sankyo’s Lixiana (edoxaban), which is in line to become a fourth-to-market non-monitored oral anticoagulant. Following its launch, Eliquis is slated to be the top-selling drug in this market in 2016, with nearly 60% of surveyed cardiologists identifying its clinical advantage over warfarin - the current gold standard therapy for stroke prophylaxis in atrial fibrillation.