Expanded PD indication in Japan for Sumitomo's Trerief

Japan’s Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma (TYO: 4506) has received approval in its home country for Trerief (zonisamide) as a treatment for parkinsonism in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB).

First approved as a treatment for Parkinson’s disease (PD) in 2001, the product was launched in Japan in this indication in 2009, and the label was expanded in August 2013 to include extra dosing information for the treatment of PD patients experiencing wearing-off after treatment with the condition’s key therapy, levodopa.

The Osaka-based firm applied to the Japanese medicines regulator last year to include the DLB indication. The symptoms of parkinsonism in DLB are nearly the same as the symptoms of motor dysfunction in PD.