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CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Chattem Inc. has teamed up with basketball hall of famer and coach Nancy Lieberman to to introduce Nasacort Allergy 24HR Nasal Spray, billed as a new, more effective over-the-counter allergy medication.
Chattem Inc. has teamed up with basketball hall of famer and coach Nancy Lieberman to to introduce Nasacort Allergy 24HR Nasal Spray, billed as a new, more effective over-the-counter allergy medication.
The Sanofi division said Tuesday that Nasacort Allergy 24HR, now available in stores nationwide, is the first and only medicine in its class to be available at full prescription strength without the need for a prescription — putting a "Full ‘Cort Press" on the range of nasal allergy symptoms for 24 hours with a once-daily dose.
Nasacort Allergy 24HR is indicated for seasonal and year-round nasal allergy symptoms, including nasal congestion, and is available in 60- and 120-spray dose bottles.
First approved as a prescription medication in 1996, Nasacort Allergy 24HR received approval from the Food and Drug Administration to switch from prescription to OTC in October 2013 and became available for retail sale in February 2014.
Chattem noted that Nasacort Allergy 24HR works differently than other OTC allergy medicines. For example, the company explained, oral antihistamines are not indicated for the treatment of nasal congestion, which is among the most bothersome seasonal and year-round allergy symptoms. In addition, many oral antihistamines may cause drowsiness, and oral decongestants containing pseudoephedrine have restricted availability because of concerns that it can be used to make illegal drugs. Also, nasal spray decongestants, such as oxymetazoline, should not be used for more than three days because they can cause a rebound effect. Nasacort Allergy 24HR is a powerful anti-inflammatory that is non-habit forming and contains no drowsiness warning, Chattem said.
"The over-the-counter medications I tried in the past only relieved certain symptoms," Lieberman said in a statement. "I need a medication like Nasacort Allergy 24HR that gives me full relief of my allergy symptoms."
In a recent survey, nearly 60% of nasal allergy sufferers who used an OTC product, which include oral antihistamines and decongestants, were not very satisfied with the medicine they used, Chattem reported. More than 60 million Americans suffer from seasonal and year-round hay fever and other upper respiratory allergies.
"I like to think of my body as a basketball court and the chemicals my body produces in response to allergens as the opposing team," Lieberman stated. "My doctor told me that many single active ingredient allergy medications available over-the-counter will only target one of the chemicals — that means the others are left open to score and cause nasal allergy symptoms. Nasacort Allergy 24HR targets five of the chemicals in a one-on-one, man-to-man defense, stopping more of what makes me miserable."
