Omega 3 fatty acid for use as a prescription medical food and omega 3 fatty acid diagnostic assay for the dietary management of cardiovascular patients with cardiovascular disease (cvd) who are deficient in blood epa and dha levels

Abstract

The present invention provides a kit for the dietary management of cardiovascular patients with cardiovascular disease who are deficient in blood Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels, said kit including a diagnostic assay for determining blood levels of EPA, DHA and Docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) and a pharmaceutical grade prescription medical food omega-3 fatty acid formulation containing about 90% or more omega 3 fatty acids by weight including a combination of EPA, DPA and DHA in a weight ratio of EPA:DHA of from 5.7 to 6.3, wherein the sum of the EPA, DHA and DPA are about 82% by weight of the total formulation and about 92% of the total omega 3 fatty acid content of the composition.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A kit for the treatment or prophylaxis of risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and protection against sudden death in patients with cardiovascular disease comprising:
 a pharmaceutical grade formulation containing omega-3 fatty acids including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) wherein the weight ratio of EPA:DHA is in the range of 5.7:1-6.3:1, the formulation contains about 90% or greater by weight omega-3 fatty acids, and the EPA, DHA and DPA comprise about 82% by weight of the content of the formulation; 0a diagnostic assay for ascertaining the levels of EPA, DHA and DPA in a patients blood; and instructions for use of said formulation and said diagnostic assay.   
     
     
         2 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  containing about 25 mg/g of DPA. 
     
     
         3 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  containing about 30 mg/g of arachidonic acid (AA). 
     
     
         4 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  containing about 30 mg/g of one or more omega-3 fatty acids having 18 carbon atoms. 
     
     
         5 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 4  wherein said one or more 18 carbon atom omega-3 fatty acid is selected from the group consisting of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), stearidonic acid (SDA) and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         6 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  wherein the omega-3 fatty acids are in the form of ethyl esters and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof. 
     
     
         7 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  wherein the omega-3 fatty acids are in the form of triglycerides and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof. 
     
     
         8 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  wherein the omega-3 fatty acids are in the form of phospholipids and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof. 
     
     
         9 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  in a unit dosage form comprising from about 645 to about 715 mg/gm EPA from about 105 to about 115 mg/gm, DHA and from about 22 to about 28 mg/gm, DPA. 
     
     
         10 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 1  in a unit dosage form comprising at least 680 mg EPA, at least 110 mg DHA and at least 25 mg DPA. 
     
     
         11 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 9  wherein the unit dosage form further includes about 30 mg of AA. 
     
     
         12 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 9  wherein the unit dosage form further includes about 30 mg/g of omega-3 fatty acids having 18 carbon atoms. 
     
     
         13 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 11  wherein said one or more 18 carbon atom omega-3 fatty acid is selected from the group consisting of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), stearidonic acid (SDA) and combinations thereof 
     
     
         14 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 9  wherein the formulation additionally comprises a stabilizer. 
     
     
         15 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 14  wherein the stabilizer is tocopherol in an amount of about 0.2%. 
     
     
         16 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 9  wherein the unit dosage form may comprise tablets, capsules, pills, powders, granules, and oral solutions or suspensions. 
     
     
         17 . The formulation in accordance with  claim 16  wherein the unit dosage form is a gel or liquid capsule. 
     
     
         18 . A kit for the treatment or prophylaxis of risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and protection against sudden death in patients with cardiovascular disease comprising:
 a pharmaceutical grade formulation containing omega-3 fatty acids including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) wherein the weight ratio of EPA:DHA is in the range of 5.7:1-6.3:1; the formulation contains about 90% or greater by weight omega-3 fatty acids, and the EPA, DHA and DPA comprise about 82% by weight of the content of the formulation; said formulation contains about 25 mg/g of DPA, about 30 mg/g of arachidonic acid (AA), and about 30 mg/g of one or more omega-3 fatty acids having 18 carbon atoms, wherein said 18 carbon atom omega-3 fatty acid is selected from the group consisting of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), stearidonic acid (SDA) and combinations thereof;   a diagnostic assay for ascertaining the levels of EPA, DHA and DPA in a patients blood; and   instructions for use of said formulation and said diagnostic assay.   
     
     
         19 . A kit for the treatment or prophylaxis of risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and protection against sudden death in patients with cardiovascular disease comprising:
 a pharmaceutical grade formulation containing omega-3 fatty acids including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) wherein the weight ratio of EPA:DHA is in the range of 5.7:1-6.3:1, the amount of EPA+DHA in the formulation is about 82.62% to about 87.82% by weight of the total fatty acid content of the formulation, and about 88.26% to about 93.06% by weight of the total omega-3 content of the formulation; the formulation contains from about 93.15% to about 94.87% by weight omega-3 fatty acids; the sum of EPA, DHA and DPA are from about 85.72% to about 87.82% by weight of the total fatty acids in the formulation, and from about 91.38% to about 95.94% by weight of the total omega-3 present in the formulation; said formulation contains about 2.53% to about 3.13% by weight of the total fatty acids in the formulation of DPA, about 3.04% to about 3.48% by weight of the total fatty acids in the formulation of arachidonic acid (AA), and about 3.21% to about 3.45% by weight of the total fatty acids in the formulation, of omega-3 fatty acids having 18 carbon atoms, wherein said 18 carbon atom omega-3 fatty acids are alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) and stearidonic acid (SDA); and wherein the sum of ALA and SDA is about 3.40% to about 3.68% by weight of the total omega-3 present in the formulation;   a diagnostic assay for ascertaining the levels of EPA, DHA and DPA in a patients blood; and   instructions for use of said formulation and said diagnostic assay.