The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has greenlit a new drug, marketed as Cobenfy, for oral use to treat schizophrenia in adults.
The medication consists of two different drugs xanomeline and trospium chloride, which provides hopes for totally patients seeking alternatives to traditional antipsychotics as which targets cholinergic receptors instead of dopamine receptor.
Schizophrenia is a chronic debilitating mental health disorder which causes hallucinations, disorganized thoughts and paranoia. It also causes cognitive issues and difficulty with social interactions and motivation which hinder daily functioning.
Dr Tiffany Farchione, director of the Division of Psychiatry, Office of Neuroscience at the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in a statement, “This drug takes the first new approach to schizophrenia treatment in decades.”
“This approval offers a new alternative to the antipsychotic medications people with schizophrenia have previously been prescribed,” he added.
“For people living with schizophrenia, it's often difficult to find a treatment that works for them. Having a variety of treatment options gives patients and healthcare providers the tools to help manage this serious condition,” said Gordon Lavigne, CEO of the Schizophrenia & Psychosis Action Alliance.
This marks the first drug in a new class of schizophrenia treatments in over seven decades.
