Schering-Plough extends the Claritin line into the 12-hour allergy relief niche in an effort to go after first-generation antihistamines with shorter durations.
The company announced Sept. 1 the launch of Claritin 12-Hour RediTabs, calling it "the only 12-hour allergy medicine found in the allergy aisle."
Other 12-hour oral remedies for allergies, including Claritin-D 12-Hour, contain pseudoephedrine and must be sold from behind store counters.
Schering's initial marketing for Claritin 12-Hour goes after allergy drugs that offer smaller windows of relief, including Johnson & Johnson's Benadryl (diphenhydramine) and Tylenol Allergy line, which includes diphenhydramine and chlorpheniramine.
The non-drowsy antihistamine is "convenient for moms looking to give their kids all-day allergy relief, while allowing the flexibility to re-dose at night, if needed," Schering says in its release.
Like Claritin 24-Hour RediTabs (loratadine 10 mg), the 12-hour version (5 mg) is indicated for use in children 6 years and older.
Rebecca Piltch, an allergist with a private medical practice in San Rafael, Calif., notes that the convenience offered by a new iteration of RediTabs should not be underestimated.
Compared to Children's Claritin syrup, the dissolving tablets are "easier to carry around and may be more convenient," she said in an interview.
"And convenience is an important factor in on-the-ground decisions that patients and parents make."
However, another doctor sees little practical benefit in Claritin 12-Hour RediTabs, for children or adults.
Allergist Neil Kao said while it is more appropriate to give children a 5-mg dose, that can be easily accomplished by splitting the 10-mg RediTabs.
"It's like trying to cut a marshmallow in half," Kao said. "There's just nothing to it, you can do it with your fingernail, practically."
For an adult taking a 12-hour RediTab compared to the 24-hour dose, "there would not only be no benefit, but they'd actually potentially not get enough antihistamine to either get relief immediately or they could run out of protection later during the day," he said.
Kao, of the Allergic Disease & Asthma Center practice in Greenville, S.C., added that some people are sensitive to loratadine and may become sleepy with a high dosage, though that occurs rarely.
A TV ad for the product shows a woman climbing a mountain, aided by Claritin 12-Hour, which "works all day so I can make it to the top," she says.
Another woman stalls on her climb after getting only four to six hours of allergy relief that the ad says would be provided by either Benadryl or Tylenol Allergy.
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- Dan Schiff (d.schiff@elsevier.com)
