View the Comparison Chart: Some Drugs for Irritable Bowel Syndrome with Diarrhea (IBS-D)

A once-daily oral formulation of mesalamine (Lialda - Shire) was recently approved by the FDA for induction of remission in patients with mild to moderate ulcerative colitis.

The FDA has approved a sublingual film formulation of the alpha-2 adrenergic receptor agonist dexmedetomidine (Igalmi — BioXcel Therapeutics) for acute treatment of agitation associated with schizophrenia or bipolar I or II disorder in adults. It is the first alpha-2 agonist and the only sublingual film to be approved for this indication. Dexmedetomidine has been available for many years in an injectable formulation (Precedex) for sedation in the intensive care unit and to facilitate procedures such as mechanical ventilation.

Atopic dermatitis (AD; also known as eczema) is frequently associated with other atopic disorders such as allergic rhinitis, asthma, and food allergy. It commonly presents in infancy and early childhood and has a relapsing course, often improving by adolescence, but sometimes persisting into (or first appearing in) adulthood or even old age.

View the Comparison Table: Some Oral Antiseizure Medications

The FDA has approved lumateperone (Caplyta — Intracellular Therapies), an oral second-generation antipsychotic, for once-daily treatment of schizophrenia in adults. It is the 13th second-generation antipsychotic drug to be approved by the FDA for this indication.

Venlafaxine hydrochloride (Effexor - Wyeth-Ayerst) was recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment of depression. An aminomethyl-benzyl- cyclohexanol, it is chemically related to bupropion (Wellbutrin).

The FDA has approved the melatonin receptor agonist tasimelteon (Hetlioz – Vanda) for treatment of non-24-hour sleep-wake disorder (non-24), which is common in totally blind persons. Tasimelteon is the first drug approved for this indication and the second melatonin receptor agonist approved for use in the US; ramelteon (Rozerem) was approved earlier for treatment of insomnia. Melatonin itself has not been approved by the FDA for any indication; it is available in the US as a dietary supplement and is promoted as a sleep aid.

Valdecoxib (Bextra - Pharmacia/Pfizer), a selective cyclooxygenase (COX-2) inhibitor similar to celecoxib (Celebrex) and rofecoxib (Vioxx), was recently approved by the FDA for treatment of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and primary dysmenorrhea.