Baxter International and Laboratoire Aguettant SAS have signed a global licensing and distribution agreement for trace elements, which are essential micronutrients used in parenteral nutrition therapy. The collaboration allows Baxter to augment its leading parenteral nutrition portfolio, currently available in more than 90 countries, with essential trace elements.
Parenteral nutrition is an intravenous therapy, which may include a balance of protein, carbohydrates, lipids, electrolytes, vitamins and trace elements for patients who cannot ingest food orally or enterally.
Trace elements are necessary for the body to function properly and play an essential role in parenteral nutrition therapy. Dietary deficiencies of these micronutrients can cause a variety of illnesses. Studies indicate adequate amounts of zinc in the body support wound healing and the integrity of cellular membranes.1 According to ESPEN, multivitamins and trace elements are an integral part of a comprehensive nutritional support regimen and should be included in daily parenteral nutrition doses.
NUTRYELT® was approved in France, Germany, Poland and the United Kingdom in 2014, and is pending approval in 15 additional European countries. SELENIUM and ZINC are two of the most commonly used stand-alone trace elements. The companies will work together to pursue even broader global regulatory approvals for these products, including in the United States. Aguettant will retain ownership of the worldwide rights of the trace elements, and will directly market these products in France.
”Aguettant and Baxter have previously partnered to provide trace elements in Europe, and during times of product shortages in the United States,” said Eric Rougemond, CEO of Laboratoire Aguettant SAS. ”This agreement significantly expands the internationalization of Aguettant. It brings together our companies’ unique expertise, channels to market and technologies that will allow us to reach more patients with these essential nutritional products.”
Laboratoire Aguettant SAS is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to the development, manufacturing and commercialization of essential hospital medicines. Its expertise in developing innovative injectable drugs makes Aguettant a duly recognized player in critical care, anesthesiology, micronutrients and neurology.
Baxter has been assisting clinicians in treating patients’ diverse nutrient needs since the 1940s, when the company first introduced liquid proteins in the form of amino acids. Since then, te company has continued to advance intravenous nutrition. As an example, Baxter pioneered the world’s first ”triple-chamber system” for IV nutrition, which provides many of the essential ingredients of balanced nutrition protein, carbohydrates, lipids and electrolytes in a single container, simplifying the preparation of parenteral nutrition for patients.