FDA Approves Controversial New Pain Relieving Drug

FDA -- A controversial new drug has been approved for the treatment for pain. To find out more, read below.

Acelrx Press Release 

FDA Advisory Committee Recommends Approval Of DSUVIA For The Treatment Of Moderate-To-Severe Acute Pain

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Oct. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (AcelRx) (Nasdaq: ACRX), a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on innovative therapies for use in medically supervised settings, announced today that the Anesthetic and Analgesic Drug Products Advisory Committee of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted 10-3 in favor of recommending the approval of DSUVIA™ for the management of moderate-to-severe acute pain in medically supervised settings for adult patients. Developed to address challenges with existing treatment options and to provide an easy-to-administer dosage form for rapid relief as early as 15 minutes, DSUVIA is a 30 mcg sufentanil tablet in a pre-filled applicator for sublingual administration by a healthcare professional.

"We are pleased with the Advisory Committee's recommendation to approve DSUVIA as a treatment in medically supervised settings for adults experiencing moderate-to-severe acute pain," said Dr. Pamela Palmer, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of AcelRx. "We look forward to continued collaboration with the FDA on the application as we believe DSUVIA represents an important non-invasive acute pain management option with potential to significantly improve the current standard of care."

The company presented DSUVIA efficacy and safety data from two randomized, placebo-controlled studies with a total of 261 patients and two open-label, single-arm studies with a total of 216 patients. In these clinical trials, DSUVIA was shown to be well-tolerated and demonstrated efficacy across a range of patient ages and BMIs as a non-invasive analgesic for the management of moderate-to-severe acute pain.

The Anesthetic and Analgesic Drug Products Advisory Committee is convened upon the request of the FDA to review and evaluate safety and efficacy data of marketed and investigational human drug products for use in anesthesiology and surgery, and makes appropriate recommendations to the Commissioner of Food and Drugs. While the FDA is not bound by the committee's recommendation, it does take its advice into consideration. The Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) date for DSUVIA is November 3, 2018.

"The availability of a single-dose, non-invasive opioid, like DSUVIA, could significantly improve my ability to effectively, efficiently and safely alleviate acute pain experienced by my patients," said David Leiman, M.D., Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Texas at Houston, and Director, HD Research Corp. "It is my hope that the FDA consider the recommendation of the Advisory Committee and the current need for additional non-invasive opioid analgesic options on behalf of patients and healthcare providers in medically supervised settings."

About DSUVIA (sufentanil sublingual tablet), 30 mcg
DSUVIA (sufentanil sublingual tablet, 30 microgram), known as DZUVEO™ outside the United States, has a proposed indication for the management of moderate-to-severe acute pain in medically supervised settings, in adult patients and was designed to eliminate dosing errors associated with IV administration via its non-invasive single-dose applicator (SDA) administered by health care professionals. Sufentanil is an opioid analgesic currently marketed for intravenous (IV) and epidural anesthesia and analgesia. The sufentanil pharmacokinetic profile when delivered sublingually avoids the high peak plasma levels and short duration of action observed with IV administration. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved DZUVEO for marketing in Europe in June 2018.

For additional information about AcelRx's clinical programs, please visit www.acelrx.com.

Should FDA Approve ‘Super Opioid’ That’s Stronger Than Fentanyl? Healthline

Their latest product before the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is called Dsuvia.

It’s a tablet that dissolves under a patient’s tongue to deliver fast pain relief during extreme trauma, such as a broken femur or a gunshot wound.
Dsuvia is meant to be used only in a supervised setting, such as an emergency room.

It contains 30 micrograms of a synthetic opioid painkiller known as sufentanil, which is 5 to 10 times more potent than fentanyl, and 1,000 times more potent than morphine.

Sufentanil itself is nothing new. It’s been approved in intravenous form since 1984.

Palmer says this new version would help with dosing problems, as well as patients who might not be fit for an IV.

https://www.healthline.com/health-news/should-fda-approve-super-opioid-thats-stronger-than-fentanyl