Wednesday, 5 August 2015

Evolving Patient Needs Spur Innovative Auto-Injectors in Commercial Market

A new generation of auto-injectors has entered the market; one that is carefully designed to address the changing needs of patients, keeping in mind the various industrial and human factors that impact its development. 

Intended for self administration or administration by untrained personnel, a wide range of auto-injectors have hit the commercial market thanks to increased prevalence of food allergies and anaphylaxis. 

Even though the auto-injectors market is presently dominated by a handful of leading players such as SHL Group, Sanofi, Mylan, Inc., Antares Pharma, Inc., Biogen Idec, Inc., Ypsomed Holdings AG, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Pfizer, Inc., Unilife Corporation, and Novartis International AG, Transparency Market Research indicates that there is still enormous scope for innovation and new product development for emerging players. 

Browse Market Research Report of Auto-Injectors Market: 

Here’s a look at two experimental auto-injectors that are looking to break the monopoly.

Ubiquitous EpiPen Faces Competition from Epinephrine Injector Alternative

Mylan’s EpiPen has since long been synonymous with food allergies in America. A dose of epinephrine – the only difference between life and death in some situations – fights anaphylactic shock triggered by an allergic reaction. Portable devices such as an EpiPen have been a constant companion for allergy sufferers across the country. 

Market analysts have time and again shown that the EpiPen controls approximately 90% of the US auto-injector market. However, a small start-up company is looking to change this scenario. Windgap Medical from Somerville, Massachusetts promises that the EpiPen competitor will be smaller be easier to use, and will have a longer shelf-life. 

The Abiliject auto-injector is less than half the size of an EpiPen, making users more likely to carry it with them at all times. The extended shelf-life comes from a proprietary method to store epinephrine in a powdered or dried form and reconstitute it just moments before injection. This dry formulation will give the Abiliject several years’ of shelf-life and also keep it from degrading when exposed to extreme temperatures or light. The EpiPen, on the other hand, expires in 18 months and degrades faster when exposed to heat above 86 degrees. 

Windgap is on its second functional prototype of Abiliject and the auto-injector is due for release in 2018. 

Another competitor that has tried to gnaw at EpiPen’s ginormous market share is Sanofi’s Auvi-Q.

Evzio Gains Speedy FDA Approval as Opioid Antagonist Auto-Injector

In the first half of 2014, Kaleo Pharma (earlier known as Intelliject) received FDA approval for Evzio, an auto-injector to counter the effects of opioids, especially in the case of overdose. 

What made this auto-injector so remarkable is that the device approval came just four months after the company’s submission of a New Drug Application. The review of the naloxone auto-injector was fast-tracked under a special priority category. 

Opioid-related deaths have been on the rise, especially in the U.S and after the high-profile deaths of celebrities such as Cory Monteith, Heath Ledger, and Philip Seymour Hoffman, public consciousness of the dangers of opioid overdose has soared. Data reveals that in 2010, an estimated 16,651 people died of opioid overdoses in the U.S. – that’s one death every half hour.

Browse Press Release of Auto-Injectors Market: 

A prescribed carton of Evzio comprises two electronic voice-directed auto-injectors that are designed to automatically give a subcutaneous or intramuscular injection even over clothing.

Innovative medical device companies are forever striving to enhance the benefits offered by auto-injectors. The growing competition to meet patient requirements and user feedback has spurred innovation in new therapy areas.

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