06-05-2025
FDA Approves New, Low-Dose Chlorthalidone for the Treatment of Hypertension in Adults: HemiClor™ (12.5 mg chlorthalidone)
WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., May 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- PRM Pharma, LLC today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of HemiClor (12.5 mg chlorthalidone) tablets for the treatment of hypertension in adults, to lower blood pressure.
HemiClor Logo
Chlorthalidone, a thiazide-like diuretic, has been studied extensively over several decades in the treatment of hypertension. It is recognized in the 2017 ACC/AHA Guideline for the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation and Management of High Blood Pressure in Adults as the preferred diuretic based on its prolonged half-life and evidence of cardiovascular outcome benefits.1 Landmark studies such as the ALLHAT and SHEP trials, sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, demonstrated that stepped-care treatment strategies—which often began with 12.5 mg of chlorthalidone—were effective in reducing the risk of cardiovascular events.2,3 These findings support the use of 12.5 mg as the recommended starting dose in current hypertension treatment guidelines, either to initiate antihypertensive therapy or to serve as add-on therapy when additional blood pressure reduction is needed.1,4
HemiClor now provides U.S. patients and healthcare professionals access to a 12.5 mg chlorthalidone tablet formulation that aligns with guideline recommendations. Until now, only higher-dose chlorthalidone tablets (25 mg and 50 mg) have been available in the U.S. This new low-dose option may help clinicians better individualize therapy and potentially reduce the risk of dose-related side effects. As noted in the approved prescribing information, metabolic adverse effects such as hypokalemia and hyperuricemia are dose-related; thus, a lower starting dose may help mitigate these risks when initiating treatment.5
"Chlorthalidone has played a key role in hypertension treatment strategies for decades," said William B. White, M.D., Professor Emeritus at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and past president of the American Society of Hypertension. "Having access to a 12.5 mg dose in the U.S. may offer clinicians additional flexibility when initiating therapy and aligns with current treatment recommendations for many adult patients with stage 1 or stage 2 hypertension."
Joseph T. McDevitt, President and CEO of PRM Pharma, LLC, added, "We are proud to introduce HemiClor as a new treatment option for adults with hypertension. Our mission is to address unmet clinical needs by developing low-dose pharmaceutical products that support evidence-based care. Lower effective doses may offer a more individualized approach to initiating therapies, particularly for elderly patients who are more susceptible to dose-related adverse effects."
