Federal Circuit Invalidates Opioid Pain Treatment Patent Claims

The Federal Circuit upheld a decision invalidating claims of two patents related to using an opioid to treat pain in patients with liver problems, ruling Dec. 27 that the claims were disclosed in prior art.

Persion Pharmaceuticals LLC sued Alvogen Malta Operations Ltd. for infringing U.S. Patent Nos. 9,265,760 and 9,339,499, covering a method of using extended-release hydrocodone to treat pain in patients with liver impairment, which normally creates an increased risk of opioid overdose. Alvogen allegedly infringed by applying to create a generic version of Persion Pharmaceuticals LLC’s Zohydro ER.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ...