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------------------------------------------------------------------------ New Data Suggest Mirapex Without Levodopa May Help Parkinson's Patients ------------------------------------------------------------------------ BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, -- September 17, 1997 -- New data from two open-label extension studies by Pharmacia and Upjohn and Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. suggest Mirapex Tablets (pramipexole dihydrochloride tablets) remained effective without levodopa therapy for 15 to 24 months in patients with early-stage Parkinson's disease. Levodopa, a medication the body converts into dopamine, is commonly used to treat Parkinson's patients. However, levodopa's effectiveness usually diminishes over time and many patients experience recurring symptoms and drug side effects, including spontaneous uncontrolled body movements and sudden switches from being "on" and able to move to being "off" and immobile. Parkinson's disease involves progressive loss of brain nerve cells that produce dopamine, a neurochemical that transmits nerve signals necessary for normal muscle movements. Symptoms include tremors, rigid muscles, difficulty in initiating movement, a stooped posture, a shuffling gait and slow movement. One of the studies was presented yesterday by Kathleen M. Shannon, M.D., associate professor of neurology at Rush Medical College in Chicago, at the 16th World Congress of Neurology in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Shannon reported 73 percent of 135 early-stage patients given Mirapex, without levodopa, still responded to treatment after two years. At one year, 81 percent of these patients were responding to Mirapex without levodopa. In another open-label study, also presented in Buenos Aires yesterday by Karl Kieburtz, M.D., associate professor of neurology at University of Rochester, Mirapex was shown to remain effective at 15 months in 78 percent of 172 early-stage patients without levodopa or other dopamine agonists. Kieburtz also reported that the patients on Mirapex showed a 20 percent improvement from baseline over those receiving a placebo in motor function and activities of daily living as measured by the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale during a 10-week double-blind evaluation period. The side effects of Mirapex are similar to those of other dopamine agonists. All patients should be informed that postural hypotension may occur more frequently during initial treatment, and hallucinations can occur at any time during the course of treatment. Copyright 1997 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. <http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/39376.htm> ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [log in to unmask]