Hexyon[TM] 6-in-1 Paediatric Vaccine Approved in Europe

Lyon, France (ots/PRNewswire) -

Hexyon is Europe's only fully liquid, ready-to-use hexavalent
paediatric

vaccine

Sanofi Pasteur MSD, the joint venture between MSD and Sanofi
Pasteur in Europe, announced today that the European Commission has
granted a community marketing authorisation for Hexyon[TM], an
innovative new 6-in-1 paediatric vaccine.

Hexyon[TM] is the only fully liquid, ready-to-use 6-in-1 vaccine
to protect infants against six World Health Organization (WHO)
priority diseases: diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, Hepatitis B,
poliomyelitis and invasive infections caused by Haemophilus
influenzae type b.

Hexyon[TM] has a unique advantage for healthcare professionals in
that it is fully liquid (with all components in one syringe) and does
not require any reconstitution, so making administration simple and
limits the risk of error. The vaccine is indicated for primary and
booster vaccination of infants from six weeks to 24 months of age in
accordance with official recommendations in each European nation.

"We are very pleased that Hexyon is now approved for use in
Europe. It clearly demonstrates Sanofi Pasteur MSD's commitment to
provide innovative advances in vaccines to enhance public health in
Europe," said Jean-Paul Kress, President of Sanofi Pasteur MSD. "With
this approval we can now give healthcare professionals an effective
vaccine for infants with a unique ready-to-use formulation that will
make administration simpler and more secure."

The EU Commission's decision follows the recent recommendation
from the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products
for Human Use (CHMP), and is supported by the results of multi-center
clinical studies involving approximately 5,000 infants. These studies
compared Hexyon[TM] with other licensed combination vaccines and
demonstrated that Hexyon[TM] has a good safety profile and induces a
robust immune response against all six targeted diseases.

The new hexavalent vaccine, developed by Sanofi Pasteur, will be
commercialised in Europe under two brands names - in Western Europe*
by Sanofi Pasteur MSD under the brand name Hexyon[TM] and in Eastern
Europe by Sanofi Pasteur under the brand name Hexacima(R).

* France, Germany, UK, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands,
Austria, Portugal, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Greece,
Iceland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein

About Sanofi Pasteur MSD http://www.spmsd.com

Sanofi Pasteur MSD is a joint venture between Sanofi Pasteur, the
vaccine division of Sanofi, and Merck, known as MSD outside the USA
and Canada. Combining innovation and expertise, Sanofi Pasteur MSD is
the only company in Europe dedicated exclusively to vaccines. Sanofi
Pasteur MSD is able to draw on the research expertise of Sanofi
Pasteur and Merck to focus on the development of new vaccines to
improve disease prevention across Europe.

ots Originaltext: Sanofi Pasteur MSD GmbH
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Contact:
For further information please contact:
Caroline ASHE, Senior Director External Communications Europe, Sanofi
Pasteur MSD, Tel : +33-4-37-28-4040, Mob: +33-6-33-46-1365,
CAshe@spmsd.com