WASHINGTON (AP) — For decades, patients seeking medication for pain have had two choices: over-the-counter drugs like aspirin or powerful prescription opioids like oxycodone.
Opioid prescriptions have plummeted over the last decade as doctors have become more attuned to the risks of addiction and misuse during the country’s ongoing drug epidemic.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals recently reported positive results for a non-opioid painkiller, one of several medications the Boston-based drugmaker has been developing for various forms of pain. Patients taking the drug after surgery experienced more pain relief than those getting a placebo, although the drug didn’t meet a secondary goal of outperforming treatment with an opioid.
The Associated Press spoke with Vertex’s chief scientist Dr. David Altshuler about the company’s research and development plans. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Nice scores three as lax defending against costs Lorient
Tory Susan Hall closes the gap on Sadiq Khan with a fortnight until London mayoral election
Primary school teacher who was sacked by school for teaching nine
Kevin Pillar gets 1,000th career hit in Angels' win at Texas
Jackson library to be razed for green space near history museums
American Express, Fifth Third rise; Netflix, PPG Industries fall, Friday, 4/18/2024
Judge drops some charges against ex
Supreme Court rejects an appeal from a Canadian man once held at Guantanamo
Bill Tobin, a longtime NFL executive who helped build the 1985 Bears championship team, has died
Independent UN experts urge Yemen’s Houthis to free detained Baha'i followers
NFL draft will include many Michigan men, maybe enough to break record set by 2022 Georgia Bulldogs