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Disease branding or condition branding is a marketing technique in which a company adopts-or invents-a condition and then develops the so-called disease state prior to or concurrently with marketing therapies for that condition. According to industry articles, while product branding promotes a specific solution, condition branding 'educates consumers, physicians and other stakeholders about the problem'. 1 For example, when the blockbuster drug Prozac (fluoxetine) was nearing the end of its patent life, the company sponsored the creation of the condition premenstrual dysphoric disorder, depicted as a more serious form of premenstrual syndrome, before marketing Sarafem (fluoxetine), which was simply repackaged Prozac. 2 The condition previously known as shyness was condition-branded as social anxiety disorder, designed to provide a marketing edge for Paxil (paroxetine), a serotonin reuptake inhibitor that otherwise risked being sidelined as just another 'me-too' antidepressant. 1
The three strategies for 'fostering the creation of a condition and aligning it with a product' are: elevating the importance of an existing condition;
redefining an existing condition to reduce a stigma;
developing a new condition to build recognition for an unmet market need. 2
Examples follow:
Elevating the importance of an existing condition: from heartburn to gastro-oesophageal reflux disease
The metamorphosis of heartburn to gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a recent example of 'elevating the importance of an existing condition'. Heartburn, a benign condition most commonly caused by eating too much or drinking too much alcohol, was renamed and condition-branded as GERD by the manufacturers of Zantac (ranitidine). To 'raise the bar of seriousness' of GERD, Glaxo created the Glaxo Institute for Digestive Health, which conferred research awards in gastrointestinal health; involved the American College of Gastroenterology; and launched a public relations effort called 'Heartburn across America'. 2
Redefining an existing condition to reduce a stigma: Viagra
To sell Viagra (sildenafil), the condition previously known as impotence was rebranded as erectile dysfunction (ED). 2 The condition branding of Viagra involved renaming the condition in a way that reduced social stigma and casting it as a highly prevalent, chronic condition that had a serious impact on quality of life. It was important to cast ED as a medical condition, rather than a psychological condition, or a normal effect of ageing. To help medicalise the condition, a questionnaire...