Synowledge Observes Rare Disease Day

Online, March 4, 2012 (Newswire.com) - Synowledge, LLC, a market leader in pharmacovigilance, regulatory affairs, and related IT services for pharmaceutical, medical device, and biotechnology companies, will join the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) in observing Rare Disease Day on February 29, 2012. The purpose is to focus attention on the needs of patients and families affected by rare diseases.

"This is a global observance," said Peter L. Saltonstall, president and CEO of NORD. "Individuals and organizations around the world will all be sharing stories of how rare diseases affect their lives."

In the U.S., any disease affecting fewer than 200,000 Americans is considered rare. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), there are nearly 7,000 such diseases affecting nearly 30 million Americans.

Studies have shown that it often takes five years or longer to get an accurate diagnosis of a rare disease. In addition, only about 200 of the diseases classified as rare have approved treatments.

Rare Disease Day started in Europe in 2008. It was launched by EURORDIS (Rare Diseases Europe). Last year, it was observed in more than 60 countries, with a national sponsor in each country. NORD is the sponsor in the U.S.

More than 500 patient organizations, government entities, research institutions, and companies developing treatments have signed up as Rare Disease Day Partners on the national website hosted by NORD. Synowledge is proud to be one of those partners.

"Since many of these diseases are genetic, more than half of the people who have rare diseases are children" Saltonstall said. "The problems encountered by families are enormous. It's important for these families to know they are not alone."

For more information about Rare Disease Day and to find out how to get involved, please visit: http://www.rarediseaseday.us/

About Synowledge

Synowledge is a global provider of drug safety, regulatory affairs and related IT solutions to small, mid and large sized pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Our comprehensive outsourcing solutions combine the unique strengths of both onshore and offshore services to meet our clients' needs. With more than 15 years of industry experience, our core team members have worked with leading pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, and health care provider organizations. Synowledge is headquartered in Stamford, CT, USA with operation facilities located in Ohio, the United Kingdom, Germany, and India. For more information, please visit www.synowledge.com.