SCHAUMBURG, Ill., Oct. 31, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:SGNT) has been named one of the winners of the 12th annual Chicago Innovation Awards.

The winners were announced at an event held at Chicago'sHarris Theater on Wednesday, October 30, with nearly 1500 business and civic leaders attending. The Chicago Innovation Awards, celebrating its 12th year, is the Chicago region's foremost recognition of the most innovative new products or services brought to market or to public service each year.

The Chicago Innovation Awards recognized Sagent for its game changing innovation which can help reduce medication errors for Heparin Sodium Injection, USP with PreventIV Measures Packaging and Labeling. Heparin is a critical and commonly used injectable anticoagulant which has consistently ranked in the top 10 for medication errors nationwide and has one of the highest risks of causing significant harm. Sagent's innovative PreventIV Measures Packaging and Labeling incorporates features to differentiate Sagent's Heparin from other drug products and further to distinguish between the nine different strengths within the Heparin family. PreventIV Measures features for Heparin include easy-to-read product name, concentration and fill volume and bold color-differentiated labels, caps, and cartons, which uniquely distinguish each product by concentration and total strength. While competitors have focused on color-coded labeling by concentration per mL, only Sagent Pharmaceuticals' unique use of color differentiation helps the end-user more readily identify each product by both concentration and total strength.

"Chicago is an innovation hub with talented business leaders who aren't afraid to be bold, be confident, and try new approaches," said Tom Kuczmarski, co-founder with Chicago journalist Dan Miller of the awards. "Every winner of the Chicago Innovation Awards embodies this mindset, and each one has an inspiring story of achievement and vision."

Sagent's Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, Jeffrey Yordon accepted the award and said, "We are honored to receive this recognition from Chicago Innovation Awards, which acknowledges our ongoing commitment to the reduction of medication errors through our holistic PreventIV Measures Packaging and Labeling."

"When you consider the impact of the innovations developed by the award winners, the depth and the quality of the more than 500 nominees, and the sheer volume of Chicagoland businesses that have created this wave of momentum and success, it is clear that Chicago is a respected global center of innovation," said Luke Tanen, Executive Director, Chicago Innovation Awards.

There were a record-high 562 nominees for this year's Chicago Innovation Awards - up front 390 last year. These nominees cut across all industries, sizes and sectors in the Chicago region.

The complete list of this year's Chicago Innovation Award winners can be found at www.chicagoinnovationawards.com.

The Chicago Innovation Awards are supported by Gold Sponsors Hillshire Brands, Comcast Business, and Disney Institute; Silver Sponsors Dell, SMS Assist, Wintrust Financial, Vedder Price, Brinks, Gilson and Leone, Edelman, SmithBucklin and others.

About Sagent Pharmaceuticals

Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing, manufacturing, sourcing and marketing pharmaceutical products, with a specific emphasis on injectables. Sagent has created a unique global network of resources, comprising rapid development capabilities, sophisticated manufacturing and innovative drug delivery technologies, resulting in an extensive and rapidly expanding pharmaceutical product portfolio that fulfills the evolving needs of patients. 


CONTACT: INVESTOR CONTACT:

         Jonathon Singer, Sagent

         847-908-1605

         jsinger@sagentpharma.com
Source: Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

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