ZURICH--Novartis AG (NVS) said Monday the European Commission
had approved its Simbrinza eye drops for use in patients with the
sight-threatening disease glaucoma.
Simbrinza, made by the Basel-based pharmaceutical giant's Alcon
eyecare unit, doesn't contain beta blockers, a class of drugs that
is often used to ease pressure in the eye, but can't be used by
some glaucoma patients suffering from certain respiratory or heart
ailments.
Glaucoma describes a group of eye conditions that impair human
vision. It is one of the main causes of blindness around the
world.
Simbrinza will be available in the U.K. in the third quarter,
Novartis said. Other European markets will follow later in 2014 and
2015.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has already approved
Simbrinza, which has been on the market in the U.S. since 2013.
Write to neil.maclucas@wsj.com