Pendopharm in partnership with Anika Therapeutics announces Canadian launch of CINGAL®--A world first in a new combination treatment for osteoarthritis knee pain

MONTREAL, May 19, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Pendopharm Inc. today announced the commercial launch of CINGAL®, the next-generation viscosupplement for the relief of osteoarthritis knee pain developed by Anika Therapeutics, Inc., a global, integrated orthopedics medicines company specializing in therapeutics based on its proprietary hyaluronic acid ("HA") technology. CINGAL® received Health Canada approval in October 2015 to treat pain associated with osteoarthritis of the knee.

"We're excited to bring CINGAL® to market and to be associated with Anika Therapeutics on such an innovative product that will provide safe treatment and long-lasting efficacy in Canadian patients with osteoarthritis knee pain. CINGAL® is a great addition to our strong portfolio of orthopedic products and further develops Pendopharm's presence in this therapeutic field" said Dr. David Goodman, Ph.D, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pharmascience Inc.

CINGAL® is a powerful and unique combination treatment that delivers fast and sustained relief from osteoarthritis knee pain in a single injection. Viscosupplements are injected by a licensed medical professional into the knee to replenish the joint's natural cushioning that depletes with age and degenerative orthopedic diseases, causing pain. CINGAL® is the first and only approved viscosupplement that combines triamcinolone hexacetonide, a well-established, FDA-approved steroid to treat inflammation, with sodium hyaluronate, the active "cushioning" ingredient in Pendopharm's best-selling viscosupplements, ORTHOVISC and MONOVISC. CINGAL® received regulatory approval in Europe earlier this month, and is under regulatory review in the United States. 

"Chronic knee pain caused by osteoarthritis diminishes a patient's quality of life by limiting their ability to participate in routine activities such as walking, climbing stairs and even getting a good night's sleep," said Dr. Robert McCormack, M.D., Orthopedic Surgeon and Chief Medical Officer for Team Canada. "Viscosupplements and steroid injections are safe and commonly-used treatments to provide long-term pain management that can help patients with knee pain restore function and stave off invasive interventions such as knee replacement surgery. CINGAL® combines the benefits of viscosupplements and steroids in a single injection to help patients achieve sustained pain relief for up to 26 weeks."

Pendopharm, a division of Pharmascience Inc., will be the sole distributor of CINGAL® in Canada under terms of the current commercialization agreement with Anika Therapeutics. The company is also Anika's sole commercialization partner for its ORTHOVISC® and MONOVISC® products.

About Pendopharm

PENDOPHARM is a division of Pharmascience Inc., a Canadian privately-owned company. Established in 1983, Pharmascience Inc. is the largest pharmaceutical company in Quebec, with a highly-skilled workforce of 1,600 people. It commercializes nearly 300 products, including branded prescription, OTC and BTC products, as well as generic products, in Canada and with its affiliates and distributors in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania.

Strategically committed to growth, PENDOPHARM is actively engaged in licensing, partnering, developing, and marketing specialty prescription medicines as well as consumer brands. For more information, please visit www.pendopharm.com.

About Anika Therapeutics, Inc.

Anika Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIK) is a global, integrated orthopedics medicines company based in Bedford, Mass. Anika is committed to improving the lives of patients with degenerative orthopedic diseases and traumatic conditions by providing clinically meaningful therapeutic pain management solutions along the continuum of care, from palliative care to regenerative medicine. The Company has over two decades of expertise developing, manufacturing and commercializing more than 20 products, in markets across the globe, based on its proprietary hyaluronic acid (HA) technology. Anika's orthopedic medicine portfolio is comprised of marketed (ORTHOVISC and MONOVISC) and pipeline (CINGAL and HYALOFAST® in the U.S.) products to alleviate pain and restore joint function by replenishing depleted HA and aiding cartilage repair and regeneration. For more information about Anika, please visit http://www.anikatherapeutics.com.

SOURCE Pendopharm

Alexandre Vignola-Côté, Citoyen Optimum, Tel: [phone], [email protected]; François David, Senior Marketing Director, Pendopharm, Division of Pharmascience Inc., Tel: [phone] (3055), [email protected]