Tinidazole (Tindamax - Presutti Labs), an oral antiprotozoal drug similar to metronidazole (Flagyl, and others), has been approved by the FDA for treatment of trichomoniasis in adults and for treatment of giardiasis, intestinal amebiasis and amebic liver abcess in adults and children more than 3 years old. Tinidazole has been widely used outside of the US for decades under the trade name Fasigyn (Pfizer).

Duloxetine hydrochloride (Cymbalta - Lilly), a selective serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), has been approved by the FDA for treatment of major depressive disorder in adults, and more recently for diabetic peripheral neuropathy as well. The Medical Letter will review its role in diabetic neuropathy in a future issue.

Acamprosate calcium (Campral - Forest) is now being marketed for oral use to maintain abstinence from alcohol. It has been used in France and other countries since 1989.

Alprazolam, a short-acting benzodiazepine, is one of the most widely prescribed drugs in the US. It is approved by the FDA for treatment of anxiety and panic disorder. An extended-release formulation, Xanax XR, which can be taken once a day, recently became available for panic disorder.

Micafungin sodium (Mycamine - Astellas), the second echinocandin antifungal to become available in the US, has been approved by the FDA for intravenous treatment of esophageal candidiasis and prophylaxis of invasive Candida infections in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT).

The Medical Letter reported last year that sildenafil (Viagra - Pfizer) appeared to be effective for idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), but confirmation from a controlled trial was needed. Now the results of such a study are about to be published, and the drug has been approved by the FDA for this indication under the trade name Revatio.

Tigecycline (Tygacil - Wyeth), a derivative of minocycline, is a new intravenous (IV) antibiotic approved for treatment of complicated intra-abdominal and skin and skin-structure infections.

The FDA has licensed Adacel (Aventis Pasteur) and Boostrix (GlaxoSmithKline), two new combination vaccines that include tetanus toxoid, diphtheria toxoid and acellular pertussis antigens (Tdap), for use as a booster in adolescents and adults. In the past, older children and adults were not re-immunized against pertussis because of concerns about reactions to the whole-cell vaccine previously used in younger children. The CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) have recommended that either of the new Tdap vaccines replace routine...

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, which have been a concern for many years, previously occurred primarily in hospitalized patients and those recently treated with antibiotics. In the past few years, there has been an increasing incidence worldwide of community-associated (CA) MRSA infections in patients without recent antibiotic exposure or contact with the healthcare system.

Atacept (Orencia - Bristol-Myers Squibb), an inhibitor of T-cell activation, has been approved by the FDA for treatment of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in patients who have not responded to one or more disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs).