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NeuroBreak: Novel Lemtrada Side Effect; Lower Narcan Dose OK'd

— News and commentary from the world of neurology and neuroscience

MedpageToday

European researchers reported in patients given alemtuzumab (Lemtrada) for multiple sclerosis. The reaction may be tied to B-cell re-population and peripheral expansion after treatment with the drug, they wrote. Both patients' symptoms improved after being given rituximab (Rituxan), which depletes B cells. (The Lancet)

But alemtuzumab won for in a new ICER report on disease-modifying therapies for MS.

The FDA has okayed a of Narcan nasal spray. The drug was initially approved at a dose of 4 mg, but some in the harm reduction community raised concerns that it was too high and could send patients into withdrawal. A spokesperson for drugmaker Opiant Pharmaceuticals told ľֱ that the 4-mg version will remain on the market. (The product is marketed by a different company, Adapt Pharma.)

Another naloxone product, the auto-injector Evzio from Kaleo Pharma, now -- up from about $700 when it was approved in 2014. (Kaiser Health News)

Authorities are turning up the heat on wholesale drug distributors, making them pay for their role in distributing excessive amounts of opioids. (ProPublica)

Yet another city is suing Purdue Pharma for its role in the opioid epidemic -- but this time, Everett, Wash., is alleging that the drugmaker through drug rings and pill mills. (STAT News)

Here are the of a new grant program from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Memorial Sloan Kettering researchers say they can .