Nephrologists Indicate High Interest in AMAG Pharmaceuticals' Newly Approved Feraheme According to Latest BioTre...( EXTON Pa. Aug. 4 /- BioTrends R...),Health

EXTON, Pa., Aug. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- BioTrends Research Group, Inc. released TreatmentTrends(R): US Nephrology, a syndicated report analyzing treatment practices, attitudes and perceptions based on online survey results from over 200 US Nephrologists. The survey was fielded in late May and focuses on trends in treatment patterns for renal anemia, secondary hyperparathyroidism and hyperphosphatemia.

Nephrologists are extremely interested in AMAG's new IV iron product, Feraheme, which was approved by the FDA on June 30, 2009. Nephrologists identified two areas in particular where both American Regent / Fresenius' Venofer and Watson's Ferrlecit seem to fall short, where AMAG may have an advantage. According to Nephrologists, the current products underperform in the CKD-ND setting on quick administration and minimal staff time. These administration attributes are areas where Nephrologists perceive Feraheme to have a competitive advantage. The uptake of Feraheme and its impact on the anemia market will be further explored in LaunchTrends(TM): Feraheme, a three-wave report series from BioTrends tracking trial, adoption and usage at one month, three months, and six months post launch.

The longer term changes in the anemia market are overshadowed by the pending dialysis bundled payment system scheduled to be implemented in 2011. According to a recent report published by BioTrends on anticipated impact of the dialysis bundle, Medical Directors foresee the increased use of IV iron to spare the use of ESAs (such as Amgen's Epogen) as well as IV iron brand selection being heavily influenced by price. Although the bundled payment only impacts the dialysis market, reimbursement has a high degree of influence on brand choice in the chronic kidney disease non dialysis (CKD-ND) market as well. This adds importance to Nephrologists' perception that Centocor-Ortho Biotech's Procrit has a competitive advantage over Am
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