Annual Report 2006 - Boehringer Ingelheim

actilyse® is the first and only thrombolytic indi-
cated for treatment of acute ischaemic stroke
within three hours after symptom onset. Addi-
tionally, the company is currently investigating
the efficacy of actilyse® within the 3 –4.5 hour
time window through the ecass 3 trial which, if
positive, will allow a larger proportion of patients
to benefit from treatment.
Boehringer Ingelheim is also the sole sponsor of
sits-most. This is the largest international stroke
registry with the objective of optimising the
thrombolytic treatment of acute stroke and providing
a benchmarking tool for best practice for
treating stroke patients worldwide. The laudable
results of the sits-most study, which enrolled
6,483 patients from 285 European centres, have
confirmed the safety and efficacy of actilyse® for
“I didn’t let a stroke stop me”
“I suffered the first stroke in 2003 at a training camp in Tashkent,
Uzbekistan. Two more followed in Germany. I was paralysed on one
side and I couldn’t speak,” recounts German national wrestling team
trainer Alexander Leipold. The former national, European and world
title-holder says with good humour: “When fate strikes, it often picks
me out. But I wasn’t going to let a stroke stop me from leading an
active life.”
serving patients
After rehab at the Medical Park Bad Rodach and treatment with a
medication for reducing the risk of further strokes, Alexander, at 35,
resumed his wrestling career in 2003, winning acclaim from leading
German sportsmen. In 2005, he won the world masters title for
wrestlers over 35 years of age in Teheran, Iran. The same year, he also
switched to his current role as trainer.
Alexander lives with his wife and two children in the German state of
Bavaria. “But apart from my sport, I’m also keen to help others fight
strokes, too”, he says. “This is the reason why I work as an ambassador
for German Stroke Aid.”
acute stroke treatment as demonstrated in the
previous pooled randomised trials. This was published
in the Lancet at the beginning of 2007.
aggrenox®/asasantin® retard/(extended
released dipyridamole + acetyl salicylic acid (ASA))
is indicated to reduce the risk of secondary stroke
in patients who have had a transient ischaemicattack
(TIA) or completed ischaemic stroke due to
thrombosis. It generated net sales of EUR 225 million
in 2006 with a growth of 31 %.
The use of aggrenox®/asasantin® retard as a
first-line treatment for secondary stroke prevention
is recommended in many international
guidelines, such as those issued by the European
Stroke Initiative (EUSI), the UK’s National
Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE),
Prescription Medicines