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Expanding Prevalent Population Will Drive Dramatic Growth for the Asthma Drug Market in China

Posted on: Tuesday, 4 September 2007, 12:06 CDT

WALTHAM, Mass., Sept. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms focusing on pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, forecasts that the asthma drug market in China will experience dramatic growth, due to an expanding prevalent population. According to the new Emerging Markets report entitled Asthma in China, the diagnosed asthma population will increase 57 percent in the next five years. An expanding population will be the key driver of this dramatic growth, but increases in the uptake of more expensive drugs, such as the combination product Seretide from GlaxoSmithKline, advocacy and promotion by the Chinese Asthma Alliance (a coordinated effort that promotes asthma prevention and treatment, improved physician education, and initiation of asthma studies), and an expanding middle class will affect the expanding drug market as well.

The report also finds that currently, there are significant barriers to diagnosis, such as the lack of disease awareness, difficulty establishing a differential diagnosis from other respiratory diseases, prohibitive cost of medical attention, lack of diagnostic technology, difficulty discerning variable symptoms (especially in a wheezing child), and the social stigma of asthma (individuals are embarrassed by not being able to breathe and therefore do not seek treatment for their symptoms). Chinese physicians also struggle with low compliance rates among their patients, further constraining optimal drug sales.

"Although the current asthma diagnosis and drug-treatment rates in China are low, the China Asthma Alliance is making strides in implementing new practices to better identify and treat patients," said Vickie Lai, analyst at Decision Resources. "This change presents an opportunity for multinational corporations (MNCs) to reach a larger potential patient population."

About Emerging Markets - China

Emerging Markets - China is the first and only syndicated report series focusing on high-growth emerging markets with comprehensive disease-specific analysis. With these reports, biopharmaceutical companies can accomplish the following:

-- More accurately assess their commercial opportunity for Western brands in key pharmaceutical markets of China -- Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou -- and in the high-growth second-tier markets of Tianjin, Wuhan, Nanjing, Hangzhou, and Jinan. -- Understand the physician treatment patterns and drivers of choice in key first- and second-tier cities based on primary research. -- Gain a clear perspective of the Chinese 5-year market forecast at the drug level, broken out by urban and rural areas, and by sales from multinational and Chinese-based companies. About Decision Resources

Decision Resources, Inc., ( http://www.decisionresources.com/ ) is a world leader in healthcare market research publications, advisory services, and consulting designed to help clients shape strategy, allocate resources, and master their chosen markets.

All company, brand, or product names contained in this document may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

Elizabeth Marshall Decision Resources, Inc. 781-296-2563 emarshall@dresources.com

Decision Resources

CONTACT: Elizabeth Marshall of Decision Resources, Inc.,+1-781-296-2563, emarshall@dresources.com

Web site: http://www.decisionresources.com/

Source: PRNewswire

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