Plavix’s sales continue to grow 27 years into its release

Prescriptions up 4%

H1 clopidogrel market reaches KRW 264 billion, up 5% year-on-year

Sales of the original Plavix rose 29% in five years, while sales of major generic versions were sluggish

Sales of the original drug ‘Plavix’ continue to rise in its 27th year of release in the clopidogrel-based antiplatelet agent market.

 

It has maintained its lead with a 23% market share in the annual KRW 550 billion market.

 

Meanwhile, major generic products are showing signs of slowing down.

 

Samjin Pharmaceutical's ‘Platless’ saw a decrease in prescriptions compared to the same period last year, while sales of Dong-A ST's ‘Plavitor’ only increased by 2%.

 

Sales of Chong Kun Dang’s ‘Pregrel' saw a 10% increase over the past year, but it still falls short of its performance before sales were suspended.

 

Plavix’s sales in the first half of the year reach KRW 64.1 billion...

 

Sales still on the rise even after 27 years on the market According to the pharmaceutical market research institute UBIST on the 9th, prescriptions for clopidogrel-containing antiplatelet drugs in the first half of this year reached KRW 264 billion, a 5% increase from the KRW 252.3 billion in the same period last year.

 

The market leader is Handok’s Plavix.

 

Sanofi launched Plavix in Korea in 1999.

 

Since 2006, it has been manufactured by Handok.

 

In 2016, a combination product called “Plavix A (Plavix+aspirin)” was added.

 

Even after 27 years since its launch, sales of Plavix continue to grow in the outpatient prescription market.

 

After the Plavix patent expired in 2007, 145 companies were approved to sell generic versions and entered the market.

 

This is in contrast to the general trend of a decline observed in the prescription sales of original drugs after the launch of generic drugs.

 

In fact, the combined prescription amount for Plavix and Plavix A exceeded KRW 100 billion for the first time in 2019 and continued to increase for 5 consecutive years thereafter.

 

Based on the prescription amount rendered in the first half of the year, it increased by 29% in five years compared to KRW 49.8 billion in the first half of 2020.

 

Quarterly prescriptions of Plavix and its generic versions

The background behind Plavix's long-term growth lies in its market expansion strategy.

 

Clopidogrel is mainly used to prevent the recurrence of ischemic cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction and stroke, and has maintained its status as a standard therapy in domestic and international treatment guidelines along with an increase in the number of patients.

 

The trust and prescription preference of medical professionals for the original drug have also contributed to its steady growth.

 

Major generic products such as Samjin’s Platless and Dong-A ST's Plavitor show sluggish growth Meanwhile, sales of major generic products have recently shown signs of a slowdown.

 

Samjin Pharmaceutical's Platless, the second-largest product in the market, recorded prescription sales of KRW 40.8 billion in the first half of this year.

 

This represents a 4% decrease from the KRW 42.5 billion in the first half of last year.

 

Dong-A ST's Plavitor, the third-largest product, saw a 2% increase in sales from KRW 15.3 billion to KRW 15.6 billion.

 

Sales of Chong Kun Dang’s ‘Pregrel’ increased by 10% from KRW 11 billion to KRW 12.1 billion.

 

However, it has yet to recover its pre-suspension sales performance.

 

Pregrel’s sales were suspended from April to July 2021 after it was revealed that it had arbitrarily used additives.

 

Before the suspension, Pregrel’s prescription sales exceeded KRW 7 billion every quarter, but since sales resumed, it has remained in the KRW 5 to 6 billion range.

 

However, overall generic prescription sales increased by 4% from KRW 202.1 billion to KRW 210.7 billion in one year.

 

This is believed to be the result of strong performance by products other than the top-ranked generics.

 

Sales of Daewoong Pharmaceutical's 'Cloart' increased by 7% from KRW 10.4 billion to KRW 11.1 billion, and Hanmi Pharmaceutical's 'Pidogul' increased by 5% from KRW 9.7 billion to KRW 10.1 billion.

 

Other products, such as JinYang Pharm’s Krivix (11%), Teragenix's Pravixen (14%), and Dasam Pharmaceutical's Clpigrel (54%), also recorded relatively high growth rates.

 

Generic companies' clopidogrel-aspirin combination drugs are not faring so well in the market.

 

HK Inno.N, Jeil Pharmaceutical, and Myungin Pharmaceutical have launched combination drugs containing the two ingredients since 2011.

 

The combined prescription sales of these combination drugs decreased by 3% from KRW 13.8 billion in the first half of last year to KRW 13.4 billion in the first half of this year.