REDWOOD CITY, Calif.,
Dec. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/
-- AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ACRX), a specialty
pharmaceutical company focused on the development and
commercialization of innovative therapies for the treatment of
acute and breakthrough pain, today announced that Richard F. Afable, M.D., president and CEO of
Covenant Health Network, was appointed to the company's board of
directors. Guy Nohra, co-founder and managing director of
venture capital firm Alta Partners, resigned from the board as of
December 10, 2013.
"As CEO of an integrated healthcare delivery network that
includes seven hospitals, Dr. Afable is at the forefront of
changing how healthcare is delivered in the US. We are
delighted that Rick is going to be able to bring those insights to
AcelRx," stated Richard King,
president and CEO of AcelRx. "I would also like to thank
Guy Nohra for his thoughtful
guidance and valuable contributions to our success over the years
as we have progressed from a development stage company toward the
potential commercialization of Zalviso™ for the treatment of
moderate-to-severe acute pain in the hospital setting."
"I am honored to join the AcelRx board and work with this
exceptional team at such an exciting stage of the company's
development," stated Dr. Afable. "I look forward to sharing
my experience with treatment assessment, acceptance, and
integration in hospitals and other healthcare delivery
organizations as AcelRx advances its portfolio of innovative pain
treatment medicines into commercialization."
Covenant Health Network, based in Irvine, California, is a non-profit healthcare
delivery system formed through the affiliation of Hoag Memorial
Hospital Presbyterian and St. Joseph Health System in 2013. The
network includes seven hospitals, an expansive physician network,
and more than 50 outpatient and urgent care facilities in southern
California. Dr. Afable's
prior professional experience includes affiliations with managerial
and patient oversight responsibility with Catholic Health East,
Preferred Physician Partners, LLC, Catholic Healthcare Partners,
and Wake Forest University Bowman Gray
School of Medicine. He earned a B.S. in biology, an M.D.
degree from Loyola University of
Chicago, and a masters in public health from the
University of Illinois at Chicago.
About AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical
company focused on the development and commercialization of
innovative therapies for the treatment of acute and breakthrough
pain. AcelRx's lead product candidate, Zalviso™, is designed to
solve the problems associated with post-operative intravenous
patient-controlled analgesia which has been shown to cause harm to
patients following surgery because of the side effects of morphine,
the invasive IV route of delivery and the complexity of infusion
pumps. AcelRx has announced positive results from each of the
three completed Phase 3 clinical trials for Zalviso, and has
submitted an NDA seeking approval for Zalviso to be used to treat
moderate-to-severe acute pain in the hospital setting. AcelRx
has also announced positive top-line results for a Phase 2 trial
for ARX-04, a product candidate for the treatment of
moderate-to-severe acute pain in a medically supervised setting,
funded through a grant from the U.S. Army Medical Research and
Materiel Command. The company has two additional pain
treatment product candidates, ARX-02 and ARX-03, which have
completed Phase 2 clinical development. For additional
information about AcelRx's clinical programs, please visit
www.acelrx.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements,
including, but not limited to, statements related to the
therapeutic and commercial potential of Zalviso and the anticipated
timing, and therapeutic and commercial potential of other AcelRx
product candidates. These forward-looking statements are
based on AcelRx's current expectations and inherently involve
significant risks and uncertainties. AcelRx's actual results
and the timing of events could differ materially from those
anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of these
risks and uncertainties, which include, without limitation, risks
related to: AcelRx's ability to receive regulatory approval for
Zalviso, that fact that FDA may dispute or interpret differently
positive clinical results obtained to date; any delays or inability
to obtain and maintain regulatory approval of its product
candidates, including Zalviso, in the
United States and Europe;
its ability to attract funding partners or collaborators with
development, regulatory and commercialization expertise; its
ability to obtain sufficient financing to commercialize Zalviso;
the market potential for its product candidates; the accuracy of
AcelRx's estimates regarding expenses, capital requirements and
needs for financing; and other risks detailed in the "Risk Factors"
and elsewhere in AcelRx's U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
filings and reports, including its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
filed with the SEC on November 5,
2013. AcelRx undertakes no duty or obligation to update any
forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of
new information, future events or changes in its expectations.
(Logo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130226/MM67303LOGO)
SOURCE AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.