The History of Allegra

While serving as the chairman of pharmacology at Georgetown University Medical Center, Raymond Woosley was part of the scientific team investigating problems occurring with Seldane (terfenadine), which had been introduced in 1985 as the first “non-drowsy” allergy medicine. Woosley discovered that Seldane was not a safe drug — interactions between Seldane and other common drugs could cause serious heart rhythm disorders, sometimes causing death. (His studies were later used to inform FDA guidelines requiring that new drugs be tested for the potential to cause heart arrhythmia.) During the course of his research, Woosley discovered fexofenadine, a breakdown product of Seldane. He realized this ingredient suppressed allergy symptoms and that it carried no risk of serious side effects. With the help of Georgetown University’s Office of Technology Commercialization, Woosley patented fexofenadine as a safe, non-drowsy allergy medication. Fexofenadine was approved by the FDA in 1996 and was marketed as Allegra by Sanofi-Aventi. (Around the time of its release, the FDA pulled terfenadine from the market along with over a dozen other medications that had been found to carry similar risks.) Allegra was approved for over-the-counter (OTC) use in 2011. Today, Allegra is one of the leading allergy medications in the United States.