Mary Lou Retton is returning to TV advertising for device manufacturer Biomet's Oxford Partial Knee System.

Hours before the expiration of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act, the Senate approved legislation renewing the program and giving the FDA new powers to police drug safety, thus averting imminent FDA layoffs.

Pfizer is set to roll out a DTC campaign for smoking-cessation aid Chantix next week, an executive said today.

Three years after the FDA yanked its Wild Thing ads off the air, Pfizer is again taking a playful approach with a Viagra TV spot riffing on the Elvis hit Viva Las Vegas.

The whimsical consumer campaign for Takedas insomnia drug Rozerem has generated lots of buzz, but not the kind of recognition that generally leads to new patient starts.

The newest indication for Reclast -- postmenopausal osteoporosis -- ups its market potential considerably, analysts said.

Just call it the Energizer Bunny. Despite drawing fire from consumer groups, legislators and other concerned critics wanting to curb it, direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising keeps on going.

The Food and Drug Administration flagged potential cardiovascular risks with AstraZenecas Nexium and its predecessor, Prilosec, but said it has not yet established an increased risk and discouraged doctors and patients from discontinuing use of the drugs.

It was a plot point on a famous episode of Seinfeld, but that was the high point for the Today Sponge in recent years. Now, 12 years after Wyeth stopped making it, a new owner is looking to relaunch the contraceptive sponge to a highly-segmented swatch of consumers with brighter packaging, print ads and a Web site.

Merck has brought back consumer marketing guru Len Tacconi to serve as global brand leader for its lead investigational component for obesity, taranabant.