Arestin

OraPharma, Inc., a pharmaceutical company specializing in the dental market, is launching a periodontal disease patient education and awareness campaign designed to encourage patients to inquire about gum disease and periodontal health, while also encouraging them to choose the comprehensive treatment of periodontal disease if it is diagnosed.

The campaign is based on recently conducted dental consumer market research* that came to four main conclusions:

The research also showed that when patients were educated, they would be more willing to follow their dental practitioners' recommendations for treatment and understood the need for adjunct antibiotic therapies to help reduce the bacteria left behind by scaling and root planing.

According to Michael Cavanaugh, OraPharma's Executive Director of Marketing, "The survey validates what we've always suspected -- the primary reason patients delay treatment of periodontal disease is due to a lack of understanding of the true nature of periodontal disease -- while it may be painless and go unnoticed by the patient for years -- it's a chronic infection that needs to be treated like any other infection in the body."

The OraPharma Periodontal Disease Patient Education Campaign consists of several colorful in-office patient education tools including brochures, patient self-exam cards and other related pieces that are available to dental professionals through the OraPharma account management and customer service teams.

These unbranded tools provide patients with detailed information regarding periodontal disease, risk factors and treatment options embedded within market research-validated visuals designed to catch and hold the attention of dental patients and direct them to talk to their dental professional for more information.

The in-office pieces are designed for the busy dental professional to quickly educate and inform a patient about their periodontal infection while also guiding them through the treatment options.

According to Dr. Sheri B. Doniger, a dental industry author and practicing dentist in Lincolnwood, Illinois, "OraPharma's new education materials make it easy for dental professionals to explain to their patients that periodontal disease is a chronic oral infection. This campaign will be extremely useful in increasing patients' knowledge of periodontal disease, making the dental professionals' job of diagnosing and treating this prevalent disease much easier."

About OraPharma, Inc.

OraPharma, Inc., is a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops and commercializes therapeutics for oral health. OraPharma is dedicated to the dental community, specifically the periodontal space with its lead product, ARESTIN® (minocycline hydrochloride) Microspheres, 1 mg.

In addition to ARESTIN®, OraPharma also distributes Oraqix® (lidocaine and prilocaine periodontal gel) 2.5% / 2.5%, a new sub-gingival local anesthetic periodontal gel, indicated for adults who require localized anesthesia in periodontal pockets during scaling and/or root planing and is manufactured by Dentsply Pharmaceuticals.

Along with ARESTIN® and Oraqix®, OraPharma also promotes REACH® ACCESSTM Daily Flosser, REACH® CLEAN BURST TM Dental Floss and ACT® Anticavity Fluoride Rinse, distributed by McNeil-PPC, Inc., to the dental community. For more information, visit www.orapharma.com

About ARESTIN®

OraPharma's flagship product ARESTIN® (minocycline hydrochloride) Microspheres, 1 mg., is indicated as an adjunct to scaling and/or root planing procedures for reduction of pocket depth in patients with adult periodontitis. ARESTIN® may be used as part of a periodontal maintenance program which includes good oral hygiene and scaling and root planing.

ARESTIN® contains minocycline, a tetracycline derivative, and therefore should not be used in children and in pregnant or nursing women. The use of drugs of the tetracycline class during tooth development may cause permanent discoloration of the teeth.

The most common treatment-emergent adverse events were headache (9.0%), infection (7.6%), flu syndrome (5.0%), and pain (4.3%). These occurred at a similar rate to scaling and/or root planing and scaling and/or root planing + placebo. For more information, visit www.arestin.com.

* Data on file, OraPharma, Inc. patient research 2004

Contact: Michael Ventriello Email Contact www.lanmarkgroup.com