Cut zetia in half, Cut Zetia sales estimates in half.

Another abstract from the AHA (3728, by Baruch et al. ) which will be released at the meeting this week shows that 5mg of Zetia is just as effective as 10mg of zetia either alone or when combined with a statin. The presentation suggests that cutting zetia in half( or presumably prescribing higher dose vytorin and then cutting it in half) could save our healthcare system a lot of money. They reported that by making 5mg the mandatory starting dose at their institution, they saved $40,000 at their hospital alone.

In this era of healthcare cost control, this is an easy change with no downside. I would expect this data to over time reduce sales of zetia and vytorin. Don’t expect MRK or SGP to talk about these results, but the data will filter out.