LOCOA® Esflurbiprofen Latest Treatment for Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is one of the most common joint disease and it is recognised as among the highest contributor of global disabilities. Taisho Pharmaceutical has launched LOCOA® Esflurbiprofen, a transdermal patch, created to help the osteoarthritis patients to manage their pain that may be troubling their movements and daily activities.

LOCOA® Esflurbiprofen Latest Treatment for Osteoarthritis

“Once someone’s being diagnosed with osteoarthritis, there’s potential for the pain to occur more frequently thus it is vital to take preventive measures and while there is no cure for this incapacitating illness, treatments have improved significantly in the recent years and there’s a clear benefit in starting treatment at an early stage”, said Chief Operating Officer of HOE Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Taisho Pharmaceutical Group, Mr. Tomoyuki Katsuta. 

LOCOA® Esflurbiprofen Latest Treatment for Osteoarthritis

LOCOA® has been approved since 2016 in Japan and it was developed with the intention of giving more option to osteoarthritis patients in managing their pain more effectively.

It occurs more frequently in males before the age of 45 and in females after 45 years of age. Most common symptoms of osteoarthritis patients include joint pain, stiffness, swelling, loss of muscle bulk, limb deformity and grating or crackling sound or sensation.

The goal of treatment in osteoarthritis is to reduce joint pain and inflammation while improving and maintaining joint function. Developed in Japan, LOCOA® is a tape type patch with COX inhibition that is used to treat inflammation and pain for osteoarthritis. 

LOCOA® Esflurbiprofen Latest Treatment for Osteoarthritis

LOCOA® offers high transdermal absorption ratio. LOCOA® has shown to provide high analgesic improvement. 

Besides resting, stretching, weight loss management, physical therapy, occupational therapy or mechanical support devices, such as knee braces, osteoarthritis patients have an option with LOCOA® to manage their pain. 

LOCOA® is proven to be safe on having a safety study based on a 52-weeks treatment and has minimal Adverse Drug Reactions (ADR). LOCOA® has a daily dosing of one patch only as the plasma concentration is well maintained throughout 24 hours. 

Mr. Tomoyuki Katsuta also added, “We hope that patients who are on LOCOA® will be able to live their day-to-day life close to normal again without having to bear much pain”. He also highlighted that the launch of LOCOA® today in Kuala Lumpur is timely with the upcoming World Arthritis Day 2021 on October 12th, 2021.

It is worth noting that Taisho Pharmaceutical has decided to choose Malaysia as the first country outside Japan to introduce LOCOA®. According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), the number of people aged 65 years and above in Malaysia has increased steadily since the 1970s. 

Seeing the potential of Malaysia to be a country with high level of health consciousness, Taisho Pharmaceutical believes by introducing LOCOA® here, it would also benefit elderly Malaysian population. 

The launch was officiated by Dr. Suhail Suresh, Consultant Orthopaedic from Sunway Medical Centre and witnessed by Mr. Tomoyuki Katsuta. LOCOA® now can be found at all major pharmacies and healthcare facilities near you. KKLIU 2358/2021