The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Otonomy, Inc.'s Otiprio (ciprofloxacin otic suspension) for the treatment of paediatric patients with bilateral otitis media with effusion undergoing tympanostomy tube placement. Otiprio is a single-dose, physician-administered antibacterial and the first product approved by the FDA for this indication.

"The approval of Otiprio, our first product, is a landmark moment in the history of Otonomy, and provides important validation for our proprietary drug delivery technology that combines a thermosensitive gel with drug microparticles to enable single dose treatment by a physician," said David A. Weber, Ph.D., president and CEO of Otonomy. "We have an experienced commercialization team in place, are building out our 40 person sales force, and look forward to launching Otiprio in the first quarter of 2016."

"As someone who routinely sees young children suffering with persistent ear infections and performs hundreds of tube surgeries each year, I welcome the approval of Otiprio as the first FDA approved product for this indication," said Eric Mair, M.D., Charlotte Eye Ear Nose and Throat Associates. "Being able to administer a single dose of Otiprio during the procedure gives me the assurance of antibiotic dosing which the phase 3 trials demonstrate reduces the rate of treatment failure following surgery."

In addition, Otonomy updated its financial guidance for 2015. GAAP and Non-GAAP operating expenses are expected to be below the previous guidance of $70-$75 million and $65-$70 million, respectively, as a result of program cost savings and expense timing differences. The total of cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments as of December 31, 2015 is expected to be in the range of $180-$185 million versus previous guidance of $165-$170 million. The company maintained its expectation for 2016 non-GAAP operating expenses in the range of $90-$95 million.

According to the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF), tympanostomy tube placement (TTP) surgery is the most common ambulatory surgery performed on children. Overall, there are approximately one million TTP procedures performed each year in the United States of which 85% are in paediatric patients, who typically have middle ear effusion and receive tubes in both ears (bilateral). The tubes are placed for the treatment of persistent or recurrent otitis media (infection and/or inflammation of the middle ear). Placement of the tube helps to ventilate the middle ear and enables the administration of topical antibiotics to treat the infection.

Otiprio (ciprofloxacin otic suspension) is a fluoroquinolone antibacterial indicated for the treatment of pediatric patients with bilateral otitis media with effusion undergoing tympanostomy tube placement. Otiprio is administered by a physician as a single 0.1 mL (6 mg) intratympanic administration into each affected ear, following suctioning of the middle ear effusion. The thermosensitive suspension exists as a liquid at or below room temperature and gels when warmed. In two phase 3 trials, a single intraoperative administration of Otiprio demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in the cumulative proportion of study treatment failures compared to tubes alone (p-value <0.001).