A new treatment to tackle a major respiratory disease which claims 2,000 lives a year in the state, will be launched today.
Around 110,000 people in the State suffer with the respiratory condition Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease which is an irreversible health problem mainly caused by smoking.
Ireland has one of the highest death rates from COPD in Europe and it estimated it is responsible for 2,000 deaths in the Republic each year.
The drug, Erdotin, has been available for over 10 years in 31 other countries, but is the first treatment of its type to be launched in Ireland in 25 years.
The disease leads to the debilitating symptoms of breathlessness and coughing which grow progressively worse over time. Patients also experience up to three exacerbations or flare-ups of the disease each year where the severity of the cough and the breathlessness worsens.
Erdotin reduces the severity of the cough by lowering the amount of mucus produced by sufferers of COPD.
Dr Kevin Gruffydd-Jones, GP and Committee Member of the General Practice Airways Group (GPIAG), said: "Exacerbations have a major impact on the quality of life of patients and can be life-threatening, often requiring hospitalisation. Early and aggressive treatment is essential. Any new treatment that improves the resolution of exacerbations is to be welcomed."
The standard treatment for flare-ups of the disease involve steroids and bronchodilators to control breathlessness and antibiotics.
The producers of Erdotin, which, said it is intended as an add-on medicine which can be used alongside standard therapies for a 10-day period.