The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 270 No 7254 p852
21 June 2003

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Scottish Medicines Consortium (more)

Scotland endorses three new drugs

Three newly-licensed medicines — biphasic insulin aspart 30 (Novomix 30) for diabetes, olanzapine (Zyprexa) for acute mania and vardenafil (Levitra) for erectile dysfunction — have been assessed by the Scottish Medicines Consortium, which has made recommendations to NHS Scotland about their use.

The SMC says that biphasic insulin aspart 30 is an effective treatment for diabetes at broadly similar costs to competitor insulins. For olanzapine, the SMC recommends restricted use while acknowledging that the drug is at least as effective as comparator treatments in acute mania. Vardenafil has been endorsed for general use by the SMC, which describes it as an "acceptable alternative" to other phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors for erectile dysfunction. The SMC adds that vardenafil is likely to be subject to the same prescribing restrictions as other treatments for erectile dysfunction.