AstraZeneca granted TRO against Apotex

NEW YORK The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey has granted drug maker AstraZeneca’s request for a temporary restraining order to prevent generic drug maker Apotex from launching a generic version of its asthma treatment, AstraZeneca announced Thursday.

The Anglo-Swedish drug maker said the court will commence a hearing on April 27 to determine whether to continue an injunction barring Apotex from launching generic Pulmicort Respules (budesonide inhalation suspension), a treatment for asthma.

The Food and Drug Administration approved Apotex’s version on March 30. AstraZeneca filed the patent litigation suit in response.

Patents covering Pulmicort Respules expire in 2018, AstraZeneca said, and patents covering its use in children expire a year later.

Pulmicort Respules had sales of $964 million in 2007, according to AstraZeneca financial data.