Exhibit 99.1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:   Adam C. Derbyshire                 Mike Freeman
           Vice President and                 Director, Investor Relations and
           Chief Financial Officer            Corporate Communications
           919-862-1000                       919-862-1000


                         SALIX PHARMACEUTICALS ANNOUNCES
                      FIRST QUARTER 2002 FINANCIAL RESULTS
                           CONFERENCE CALL AND WEBCAST

RALEIGH, NC, April 30, 2002 - Salix Pharmaceuticals, Ltd. (Nasdaq:SLXP) today
announced that the Company will report first quarter 2002 financial results
before the market opens on Wednesday, May 15, 2002.

The Company will host a conference call at 10:00 a.m. EDT, on May 15, 2002.
Interested parties may access the conference call by way of web cast or
telephone. The live web cast will be available at http://www.salixpharm.com. The
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web cast will be archived on the Company's web site through May 21.

The telephone numbers to access the conference call are (888) 857-6929 (U.S. and
Canada) or (719) 457-2600 (international.) A replay of the call will be
available from 1:00 p.m., EDT, May 15 through May 21. The telephone numbers to
access the replay of the call are (888) 203-1112 (U.S. and Canada) or (719)
457-0820 (international.) The access code for the replay is 355866.

Salix Pharmaceuticals, Ltd., headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, develops
and markets prescription pharmaceutical products for the treatment of
gastrointestinal diseases. Salix's strategy is to in-license late-stage or
marketed proprietary therapeutic drugs, complete the required development and
regulatory submission of these products, and market them through the Company's
60-member gastroenterology specialty sales force. Salix's lead product is
COLAZAL(R), an anti-inflammatory drug approved for the



treatment of mildly to moderately active ulcerative colitis. The Company
launched the product in the U.S. through its specialty sales force in January
2001. COLAZAL was well tolerated in clinical studies. In clinical trials,
patients reported the following adverse events most frequently: headache (8%);
abdominal pain (6%); diarrhea (5%); nausea (5%); vomiting (4%); respiratory
infection (4%); and arthralgia (4%). Withdrawal from therapy due to adverse
events was comparable to placebo. Salix's next product candidate is LUMENAX(TM)
(rifaximin), currently in development for the potential treatment of infections
of the lower gastrointestinal tract. The Company submitted an NDA for rifaximin
for the treatment of travelers' diarrhea to the FDA on December 26, 2001. Salix
trades on the Nasdaq National Market under the ticker symbol "SLXP."

For more information please contact the Company at 919-862-1000 or visit our web
site at www.salixpharm.com.
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     Please Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements
     regarding future events. These statements are just predictions and are
     subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual events or
     results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include risks
     of regulatory review and clinical trials, the need to acquire additional
     products and management of rapid growth. The reader is referred to the
     documents that the Company files from time to time with the Securities and
     Exchange Commission.