Welcome to Medicure's earnings conference call for the quarter ended March 31, 2023. My name is Holly, and I will be your operator for today's call. At this time, all participants are in listen-only mode. Before we proceed, I would like to remind everyone that this presentation contains forward-looking statements relating to future results, events, and expectations, which are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, those described in the Company's most recent Annual Information Form and Form 20-F. Later, we will conduct a question-and-answer session.
Please note that this conference call is being recorded, and today's date is May 29, 2023. I would now like to turn the conference call over to Dr. Albert Friesen, Chief Executive Officer of Medicure Inc. Please go ahead, Dr. Friesen.
Thank you, Holly. Good morning to everyone on the call. We appreciate your interest and participation in today's call. Joining me today on this Q1 2023 financial statement call is Dr. Neil Owens, President and Chief Operating Officer, and Haaris Uddin, Medicure's Chief Financial Officer. We're pleased to report that revenue of CAD 5.6 million for Q1 2023 remains steady from the previous quarters, with net income of CAD 290,000, EBITDA of CAD 867,000, and CAD 0.03 per share of earnings, all showing consistent good financial returns. AGGRASTAT sales and ZYPITAMAG sales, and Marley Drug income all provide net in earnings, and net earnings are on top of their R&D investment of CAD 526,000 this past quarter.
The four focuses of business, just reminding you, are the sales and profits from AGGRASTAT, growing ZYPITAMAG revenue and profit, growing the Marley Drug online pharmacy business, and the development of MC-1 for the PNPO deficiency application. The acquisition of Marley, the online pharmacy delivering to homes in all 50 states and other territories through mail, was to expand our sales reach for ZYPITAMAG and is growing a contributor to Medicure's business. We believe the investments and experience of the past 25 years positions Medicure on a steady path of continued success. I'd now like to turn the call over to our Chief Financial Officer, Haaris Uddin, to review and provide some color on the financial results.
Thank you, Dr. Friesen. A couple of quick items to note before I start. All dollar figures are in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise noted by each presenter. As a reminder, you will be able to obtain a complete copy of our financial statements for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, by the end of day today, along with previous financial statements on the investors page of our website. Alternatively, a copy of all financial statements and management discussion analysis can be obtained immediately from sedar.com. I will now provide some key highlights of our financial performance for the quarter ended March 31, 2023. Total revenues for the period ended March 31, 2023, were CAD 5.6 million, compared to CAD 5.7 million for the period ended March 31, 2022.
Net revenues earned from AGGRASTAT during the current quarter totaled CAD 2.7 million, a slight decrease from the prior year, where net revenue from AGGRASTAT was CAD 2.8 million. The decrease in AGGRASTAT revenue during the current quarter is a result of fluctuating foreign exchange rates and higher wholesale fees on units of product sold. Net revenues earned from ZYPITAMAG during the current quarter totaled CAD 640,000, which is a decrease from the CAD 1 million of net revenue earned during the prior year. The decrease can be attributed to coverage gap rebate, rebates paid during the current period, in addition to higher wholesale fees. The company continues to focus on ZYPITAMAG and hopes to see a growth in sales of ZYPITAMAG throughout 2023 and beyond. Moving on to Marley Drug.
Net revenues from Marley Drug during the current quarter totaled CAD 2.3 million. This is an increase from the CAD 1.9 million earned from Marley Drug during the same period in the prior year. The increase in Marley Drug sales during the current year is due to an increased volume of sales, which is partially attributable to the launch of the Marley Drug E-Commerce Platform, which was launched during the beginning of 2022. Moving on to cost of goods sold. AGGRASTAT cost of goods sold for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, totaled CAD 770,000, a decrease from the prior year, where cost of goods sold totaled CAD 911,000. The decrease in cost of goods sold for AGGRASTAT is the result of better inventory management during the current year, in addition to a lower volume of AGGRASTAT sold.
ZYPITAMAG cost of goods sold for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, totaled CAD 317,000, an increase from the prior year, where cost of goods sold for ZYPITAMAG was CAD 224,000. Included within cost of goods sold for ZYPITAMAG is CAD 117,000 relating to products sold to customers, CAD 153,000 of amortization of the ZYPITAMAG intangible assets and CAD 47,000 relating to royalties on the sale of ZYPITAMAG, resulting from the acquisition of the product in September of 2019. The increase in cost of goods sold noted during the current year is due to a higher volume of ZYPITAMAG sold during the current quarter, ended March 31, 2023. Marley Drug's cost of goods sold totaled CAD 745,000 during the quarter ended March 31, 2023.
This is an increase from the prior year, where cost of goods sold totaled CAD 556,000. The increase in cost of goods sold during the current year is a result of a higher volume of products sold through Marley Drug during the current period. Selling expenses totaled CAD 2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, in comparison to CAD 1.7 million during the prior year. Selling expenses increased in the current year due to the company recording a higher volume of products sold during the current period, in addition to inflationary increases the company has been subject to during the current year. General and administrative expenses totaled CAD 906,000 during the current period, in comparison to CAD 1.3 million during the same period in the prior year.
The decrease in general and administrative expenses is primarily related to the decrease in professional fees paid by the company during the current period. The company incurred additional professional fees in the prior year as a result of the launch of the e-commerce platform during Q1 of 2022. Research and development expenses for the current period totaled CAD 526,000, compared to CAD 345,000 during the prior year. The increase during the current year is primarily due to the timing of research and development expenditures relating to each development project the company is currently undertaking. The company recorded CAD 5,000 during the current period ended March 31, 2023, of finance expense.
The finance expense recorded during the current period consisted primarily of bank charges, finance expense on the company's lease obligations. These were both offset by interest income earned during the current period. The company recorded a foreign exchange loss during the period ending March 31, 2023, of CAD 24,000, compared to a foreign exchange loss of CAD 133,000 during the prior year. The change was to the change in the U.S. dollar exchange rate during the respective years, which led to an unfavorable foreign exchange loss during the current period. Adjusted EBITDA for the period ended March 31, 2023, was CAD 916,000, compared to an Adjusted EBITDA of CAD 1.2 million during the period ended March 31, 2022.
The decrease in Adjusted EBITDA during the current year is due to a decrease in operating income, which primarily stemmed from a decreased net revenue from the sale of AGGRASTAT and ZYPITAMAG, an increase in R&D expenses, offset by an increase in net revenue through Marley Drug. As at March 31, 2023, the company had cash totaling approximately CAD 4.92 million, a slight increase from the CAD 4.86 million held at December 31, 2022. The company does not have any debt on its books. I want to remind you that there will be an opportunity at the end of today's call for you to ask questions regarding the financial results of the company as a whole. With that, I would like to turn the call over to our President and Chief Operating Officer, Dr. Neil Owens, for some additional commentary regarding our operations.
Thank you, Holly. Good morning, everyone. Starting with some further details on the AGGRASTAT business. Product volume decreased by 5% in Q1 compared to the previous quarter, which did translate to a lower net revenue for the quarter. Net revenue was also impacted by higher wholesaler fees for AGGRASTAT products sold. The company did decide to strategically increase the selling price of some product formats, along with price increases on certain contract agreements. We continue to provide support to our more than 1,200 hospital accounts in the U.S. and promote the brand. We have not yet seen any generic entries at this point. Medicure's royalty obligations for AGGRASTAT have also now come to an end. Regarding ZYPITAMAG, we continue to see consistent growth in prescriptions filled from Marley Drug, including a 20% increase in units dispensed in Q1 2023, compared to the previous quarter.
Net revenue through insurer channels was impacted significantly from increased wholesaler and coverage gap fees, which is another reason why selling ZYPITAMAG through Marley Drug is an effective approach. We continue to build brand awareness through efforts of our sales and marketing team. We are focused on customer retention and maintaining a high refill rate. In Q1, net revenue from the Marley Drug pharmacy business was on par with the previous quarter. Through a fee-based approach, Medicure still plans to provide other innovative branded medications that have a clear clinical advantage at a cash price through Marley Drug. This also includes leveraging Marley Drug's capabilities and other business partnerships. The company is still focused on growing brand awareness through multiple media channels and through PR publicity. Overall, we continue to look for ways to rapidly expand the pharmacy business.
Medicure's R&D focus is primarily on its phase 3 study to seek approval of MC-1 as the first FDA-approved therapy for patients with PNPO deficiency, which is a rare pediatric disease leading to seizures and is ultimately fatal if untreated. In parallel to the Phase 3 clinical study, Medicure is conducting several non-clinical studies to support the approval of MC-1, as requested by the FDA. We expect to share an update on enrollment very shortly. The clinicians and patients are very keen to begin the study. We thank them for their patience. If successful, use of Medicure's legacy product, MC-1, could lead to a priority review voucher, which can be redeemed or sold and provides significant value. For Q1, we are pleased to report a positive Adjusted EBITDA of CAD 916,000, as well as net income of CAD 290,000.
Our goal is to continue growing revenue, controlling our costs, and making Medicure a long-term success. With that, I'd like to turn the call back to Dr. Friesen for final comments.
Thank you, Neil. The four focuses of Medicure's business is providing net income and significant growth potential. We're thankful for continued strength in the AGGRASTAT market and a strong balance sheet. We're still focused on growing the business with a pipeline of cardiovascular products that will further diversify our revenue and asset base, carefully investing to grow our future profitability. My goal, and that of our board, management, and staff, is to continue to build this business with a stable, long-term outlook to generating value for our shareholders. As always, I want to express my appreciation to the outstanding team of employees that we've been blessed with. Thank you, our shareholders, for your continued support and interest. Now, Moderator, I'll turn back to you for the question and answer portion.
Certainly. We will now begin the question-and-answer session. If you have a question, please press star one on your telephone keypad. A confirmation tone will indicate your line is in the question queue. You may press star two if you would like to remove your question from the queue. For participants using speaker equipment, it may be necessary to pick up your handset before pressing the star keys. Once again, that is star one to ask a question. One moment while we poll for questions. There are no questions in queue.
Thank you, Moderator. Thanks, those shareholders on the call. This concludes our conference, and thank you for your participation.
Thank you. This concludes today's conference. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.