Ciprofloxacin - History

History

The patent history for ciprofloxacin makes reference to a 1982 European Patent (patent number 0049355), as well a German patent dated 21 January 1986. Bayer introduced ciprofloxacin in 1987 and it was later approved by the U.S. FDA on 22 October 1987 for use in the United States to treat specific bacterial infections. In 1991, the intravenous formulation was introduced. The current United States patent appears to be held by Bayer, being the assignee. The United States patent was applied for in January 1987, but was not approved until 1996 according to the patent history.

In 2004, ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin together commanded 65% ($3.3 billion) of the global sales of the fluoroquinolone class. The first nine months of 2008 sales for ciprofloxacin were $242 million, as compared to $324 million for Bayer aspirin. Ciprofloxacin has been a highly successful drug for Bayer A. G., generating billions of dollars in revenue. "In 1999, Cipro was the eleventh most prescribed drug in the United States based on new prescriptions, and ranked twentieth in total United States sales. In 1999, Bayer's gross sales of Cipro in the United States were approximately $1.04 billion." The sale of ciprofloxacin increased dramatically following the anthrax scare of 2001. On 24 October 2002, the Bush Administration (2001–2009) announced a deal between the government and Bayer Pharmaceuticals to purchase 100 million tablets of ciprofloxacin at a reduced price of $0.95 per pill.