Acomplia (Rimonabant)

Manufacturer: Sanofi-Aventis

Acomplia (rimobant) is a weight-loss medicine. It is marketed under the brand names Acomplia in Europe and Zimulti in the USA. There is also a generic version of this drug called Rimonabant. Although Acomplia has been approved for marketing throughout Europe, it is still undergoing the process of approval in other countries. Therefore the best way of buying Acomplia is through online pharmacies.

What is it?

Acomplia belongs to the new class of therapeutic agents known as Cannabinoid-1 (CB1) Receptor Blockers. It is used to treat obesity, overweight and related conditions.

How does it work?

Acomplia selectively blocks CB1 receptors of brain and peripheral organs that account for glucose and fat metabolism. It switches off brain circuits that cause the feeling of hunger. By blocking CB1 receptors Acomplia slows down the activity of endocannabinoid system or EC for short. EC system regulates body weight and controls energy balance.

What is it used for?

Accomplia is used as a supplement to diet and exercise for the patients with obesity and overweight suffering from Type 2 diabetes and excessive level of fat in blood.

The manufacturer also claims that Acomplia can decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Can it help to Quit smoking?

According to researches conducted by Sanofi-Aventis Company Acomplia can be used as an aid to smoking cessation but a relevant approvable letter from the FDA has yet to be issued.

What did clinical trial studies of Acomplia show?

The results of clinical studies proved that Acomplia improves a wide range of cardiometabolic risk factors and promotes sustainable Weight Loss. Nearly half of the improvements that were observed in patients receiving 20mg of Acomplia can’t be accounted for by Weight Loss alone.

What are the side-effects?

19% of patients receiving Acomplia vs 13% of those taking placebo experienced vomiting and nausea and were forced to leave the trial.

Marc Cluzel, Sanofi’s head of research, said in a round of interviews in London that he continues to believe Acomplia can be a winner.

Sanofi-Aventis said on April 3rd it still has high hopes for diet drug rimonabant (Acomplia / Zimulti), even though it was rejected by a U.S. FDA advisory panel last year and recent clinical trial news has been less than wildly encouraging.
Acomplia, which was to have been marketed in the United States as Zimulti, was withdrawn from FDA consideration last June after an expert panel unanimously recommended against approval out of concern over depressive and suicidal side-effects.

Data from a new clinical trial of possible use of Acomplia in slowing progression of coronary artery disease was reported this week along with news that 43.4 percent of patients who got rimonabant in this trial suffered psychiatric side effects such as anxiety and depression.

While the results of the heart trial were ambiguous at best, Cluzel put a positive face on it — and reiterated that Sanofi intends to resubmit rimonabant to the FDA and regulators worldwide in 2009 for approval as a treatment for type 2 diabetes.

He noted that the Acomplia development program — involving clinical trials for a variety of conditions in addition to obesity — is only one-third completed.

“It’s very difficult before 2011 to know exactly what will be the full benefits of the product,” Cluzel told the news agency Reuters.

Another Sanofi executive, Belen Garijo, also expressed confidence that sales of Acomplia — which have been disappointing to date — will grow in Europe and other countries where it is on the market.

“We are very confident that Acomplia will grow in Europe,” Garijo told Reuters, noting that it is being reimbursed by insurance in a growing number of markets.

Source: http://www.acompliareport.com/News/news-040408.htm