Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) has launched SAFLUTAN™ (tafluprost) in the United Kingdom and Spain, and additional launches in other countries are expected over the next several months, pending regulatory approvals, the Company said today. Tafluprost, the first preservative-free ophthalmic prostaglandin, is licensed in the launch markets for the reduction of elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) in appropriate patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension.
Tafluprost is a synthetic analogue of the prostaglandin F2α, and may offer benefits for patients with glaucoma, including those patients who experience certain adverse reactions associated with eye drops that contain preservatives, such as those who have dry/sensitive eyes or chronic eye diseases. Tafluprost may be used as monotherapy in patients who would benefit from preservative free eye drops, are insufficiently responsive to first line therapy, or are intolerant or contraindicated to first line therapy. It may be used as adjunctive therapy to beta-blockers. The recommended dose is one drop of tafluprost in the affected eye(s) once daily in the evening.