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 ------------------------- 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. ------------------ 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.