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Updated: Aug 18, 2025

High-throughput Identification of Synergistic Drug Combinations by the Overlap2 Method
Published on: May 21, 2018
Patent "Evergreening" of Medicine-Device Combination Products: A Global Perspective
Reed F Beall1, Tali Glazer2, Haris Ahmad2
1Assistant Professor, Department of Community Health Sciences, Cummings School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB.
Background:
Patenting medicine-delivery devices (inhalers and pens) is controversial when it extends market protections beyond that of the underlying therapeutic agent. We evaluated how common device patenting is, internationally.
Method:
Using a product sample (n = 88) and an international patent database, we assessed the issue's scope.
Results:
When comparing the 88 patent portfolios for each product in each country, Canada was found to be among the most impacted, with 90% of the portfolios containing at least one device patent and 35% of the portfolios containing device patents exclusively.
Conclusion:
Patenting of delivery devices impacts major pharmaceutical manufacturing centres worldwide. International consensus among stakeholders (regulators and payors) is needed on which device modifications represent meaningful clinical value.
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