HEALTH CARE : Viratek to Market Its Anti-Viral Drug in Netherlands Antilles

Viratek Inc. of Costa Mesa is out to fight that cold-weather fiend, influenza, even in the sunny, tropical climate of the Caribbean Sea.

The company, a subsidiary of ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc., said Monday that it has gained market approval to sell its key anti-viral drug, Virazole, in the small island of Netherlands Antilles, which is located off the coast of Venezuela.

The market share is not expected to be great--the island has only 150,000 residents--but ICN spokesman Paul Knopick said that the approval has psychological significance for the drug, which has not made much headway in the United States and was the center of a controversy several years ago involving its alleged benefits to AIDS patients.

Used in 44 countries as a treatment for at least one of several influenza viruses and hepatitis strains, Virazole can only be marketed in the United States in aerosol form for treatment of infants suffering from respiratory tract infection.

The drug is currently being tested in the United States for treatment of a strain of hepatitis.

“What this shows is a continued worldwide acceptance of the product,” Knopick said.