Bayer and MSD's Vericiguat (Verquvo) Approved in China for Treatment of Chronic Heart Failure

On May 19, the official website of China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) announced that the innovative therapy vericiguat (brand name Verquvo), jointly developed by Bayer and MSD, has been approved for marketing under priority review. It is indicated for adult patients with symptomatic chronic heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (ejection fraction <45%) whose condition has stabilized after recent decompensated heart failure treated intravenously, to reduce the risk of hospitalization for heart failure or the need for emergency intravenous diuretic treatment.

Vericiguat is a soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) stimulator that relaxes smooth muscle and dilates blood vessels by directly stimulating sGC to increase intracellular cGMP levels. The approval of this drug provides a new treatment option for adult patients with symptomatic chronic heart failure.