The multiple sclerosis drugs can be divided into different segments according to the delivery method.
Injectables: Traditionally most of the drugs are injectables. Biogen's Avonex belongs in that category.
To
make it more convenient and the use of it less painful, the company has
introduced the Avonex Pen, an auto-injector with a thinner needle. The
pen has been well received by the patients and even helped Avonex to
gain some additional market share.
But
the use of the pen does not change the injection frequency, which is
once-a-week and the manner of the injection which is intramuscular (into
the muscles).
The
new drug Plegridy, which is expected to get approval this year, is also
a beta interferon like Avonex, but it is a pegylated version which
means longer lasting, therefore the injections can be done less
frequently. The approval is expected for a subcutaneous injection (into a
layer below the skin) every two weeks or every four weeks.
