First Cold & Flu Relief Product Allows ‘Freedom of Choice’ in Medicine Taste
PHOENIX, Jan. 26 /PRNewswire/ — As the nation braces for the peak of cold and flu season, consumers can, for the first time, choose the taste of their cold and flu medicine to obtain multi-symptom relief. New Zicam(R) Maximum Strength Flu and Zicam(R) Cold & Flu are the only cold and flu products to feature a virtually tasteless formulation that can be dissolved into any hot or cold liquid such as orange juice, ginger ale, chicken broth or tea.
Zicam’s exclusive “Spoon Dosing System” is a unique all-in-one sealed spoon-shaped package that contains a pre-measured, single dose of medication that avoids messy dosing spoons or cups and the need to measure the amount of medicine. Both products are available in a daytime and alcohol-free nighttime formula that is pseudoephedrine-free.
“The concept of having ‘medicine your way’ offers a unique benefit beyond what is currently offered in the marketplace, because patients who are in discomfort, can maintain control over how their medicine tastes,” says Darrell Hulisz, PharmD, Associate Professor of Family Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. “In addition to symptom relief, these products may help patients manage the risk of dehydration, which is a serious condition associated with the flu.”
Dehydration Critical To Flu Treatment
Leading authorities, including the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, and the Mayo Clinic either specifically cite dehydration as a key flu complication or cite the importance of drinking plenty of liquids for flu patients.
Results from the recent “Zicam Flu Survey,” designed to examine the attitudes and actions of physicians and consumers about flu, uncovered a potentially dangerous doctor-patient disconnect regarding the perception of flu’s severity. While nearly 80 percent of doctors consider flu to be a “very severe” or “extremely severe” illness compared to other typical illnesses, only 42 percent of consumers agreed. Further, the survey found that dehydration is a serious, yet often overlooked, flu side effect. Despite the fact that the majority of doctors (57 percent) considered dehydration the single most dangerous flu side effect — even above fever — both physicians and consumers are “all wet” when it comes to targeted treatment. When asked which flu side effects they address, only nine percent of physicians and less than eight percent of consumers mentioned dehydration.
“The Zicam Flu Survey findings raise a red flag that is a wake-up call to millions of Americans who might underestimate the flu’s severity as well as the risk of becoming dehydrated if they do get the flu,” said Leanne M. Chrisman-Khawam, MD, MEd., family physician and Associate Professor, Department of Family Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland. “Flu is a significant illness with potentially serious side effects, like dehydration, that must be taken seriously and treated tenaciously. Severe flu symptoms like fever and body aches often keep patients from taking in adequate fluids. By managing symptoms, flu sufferers will be more likely to manage their dehydration as well.”
Zicam Maximum Strength Flu and Zicam Cold & Flu can be purchased at major food stores, drug stores and mass merchandisers nationwide. The retail price is $8.99.
The “Zicam Flu Survey” is a national telephone survey of 500 consumers (men and women 18 years and older) and 100 primary care physicians.
About Matrixx Initiatives, Inc.
Matrixx Initiatives, Inc. is engaged in the development, manufacture and marketing of over-the-counter healthcare products that utilize innovative drug delivery systems. Zicam, LLC, its wholly-owned subsidiary, produces, markets and sells Zicam(R) products in the cough and cold category; and recently launched a new brand, Nasal Comfort(TM), for nasal health. The Company’s flagship product Zicam Cold Remedy nasal gel, is a patented, homeopathic remedy that has been clinically proven to reduce the duration and severity of the common cold. In studies published in the October 2000 issue of ENT — Ear, Nose and Throat Journal, and separately in the January 2003 issue of QJM: An International Journal of Medicine, the Zicam Cold Remedy product was shown to reduce the duration of the common cold. The Company also manufactures and markets a full line of Zicam brand pharmaceuticals, including Zicam Cold Remedy Chewables(TM); Zicam Cold Remedy Oral Mist(TM); Zicam Cold Remedy RapidMelts(TM); Zicam Allergy Relief; Zicam Cold Remedy Swabs(TM); Zicam Kids Size Cold Remedy Swabs(TM); Zicam Extreme Congestion Relief; Zicam Sinus Relief; Zicam Nasal Moisturizer, as well as seven Zicam Cough Mist(TM) products and four Zicam Cold & Flu relief items. For more information regarding Matrixx products, go to http://www.matrixxinc.com/.
Matrixx Initiatives, Inc.
CONTACT: Meryl Rader, +1-908-389-9804, mrader@storchmurphy.com, or LisaLevy, +1-908-273-1400, llevy@storchmurphy.com, both of The Storch-MurphyGroup, for Matrixx Initiatives, Inc.
Web site: http://www.matrixxinc.com/