Reloxin – A Botox Alternative – Could Enter the Market Later This Year

The March-April issue of Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery features a new study evaluating the long-term safety of Reloxin for repeated use in moderate – severe glabellar lines (forehead wrinkles) over 13 months.

Spokespersons from Medicis Pharmaceutical say they expect to receive FDA clearance for Reloxin later this year. When this occurs, it could bring the first real Botox competitor to the U.S. market – a market which helped Allergan Inc. net about 1.3 billion in revenue last year.

One Los Angeles dermatologist spoke to Bloomberg news about the study, saying “the side effects are the same as Botox” and “many of our patients liked it even better.”

Reloxin, like Botox, is composed of a particular botulinum toxin that has been proven to relax the muscles that cause wrinkles in the face.

While Reloxin has been sold outside the US for over 15 years under the name Dysport, Botox has still managed to claim over 80 percent of the worldwide market for the neurotoxin.  One analyst speculates that “Reloxin may be priced 15 percent lower than Botox” which could allow it to take a significant share of the market.