Patent 7485726 was granted and assigned to Aurobindo Pharma on February, 2009 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
The present invention relates to an improved process for the selective crystallization of 3-pyridyl-1-hydroxyethylidene-1,1-bisphosphonic acid sodium in pure hemi-pentahydrate form of Formula (I), by first converting 3-pyridyl-1-hydroxyethylidene-1,1-bisphosphonic acid into organic amine salt and then by replacing it with sodium salt.