Medical Ad Watch

By WES ALLISON

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 20, 2000

Brand name: Flonase

Generic name: Fluticasone propionate

Purpose: Anti-allergy

Manufacturer: Glaxo Wellcome

Availability: By prescription only for adults and children age 4 and older. It is taken as nasal spray.

Cost: About $60 for a 30-day supply.

The campaign: Glaxo Wellcome last year spent $53.5-million on TV and magazine ads to promote Flonase in the lucrative anti-allergy market, according to IMS Health. Its chief competitor is Claritin, America's most heavily promoted drug, which spent $137.3-million on ads last year.

The pitch: The prime-time television ad running in the Tampa Bay area shows a woman and a little girl cutting wildflowers in a field. A man with a stethoscope and white lab coat suggests, "Ask your doctor about Flonase . . . When your doctor writes you a prescription for Flonase, you'll be glad you took the time. Why wait?"

The ad gives no information about the drug and does not state its purpose.

How it works: Most anti-allergy medications are decongestants or antihistamines designed to unplug your nose or stop it from running. But Flonase is a corticosteroid that works by reducing inflammation of the nasal passages. The effects are not immediate, and you must take it once a day, every day, whether or not your allergies are bothering you.

Side effects: Headache, nosebleeds or sore throat.

How it scores: Under FDA regulations, an ad that lists the drug's purpose also must list its side effects and contraindications, as well as sources of more complete information, such as a Web site. But ads that give only the brand name -- called "reminder ads" -- are not required to include any information.

The Flonase ad cleverly gets its message across without the bothersome fine print: Although it never mentions it is allergy medicine, the woman and wildflowers are a good tip-off. Claritin's ads also show a woman sauntering through a field of wildflowers.

"Running the reminder ads with just the product name, and without any mention of what it's for, they can be short, and they just help increase awareness of the product name," said Dick Jones, a spokesman for Glaxo Wellcome. "They capitalize on what you're doing with the other ads."

Area allergists say Flonase is indeed effective. But Dr. Dennis Ledford, an allergist-immunologist at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center and Unversity of South Florida, said the absence of information does little to help allergy sufferers.

"I just don't feel it accomplishes much other than to sell their product," he said. "I would prefer them to take the high road and try to get some education with the message . . . I guess . . . the user has to be aware."

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