| Class | Name/Company | Approval Dates and Comments |
Antifungal |
Amphotericin B
Lipid Complex
Injection
Abelcet®
Liposomes
| Approved by the FDA for the treatment of any progressive form of
fungal infection that fails to respond to conventional treatment. This
is in addition to its indication for aspergillosis. |
Butenafine HCl
Cream 1%
Mentax®
Schering/Penederm
| Approved by the FDA on October 18, 1996 for the topical treatment
of interdigital tinea pedis (athleteís foot). |
Itraconazole
Sporanox® Janssen (Johnson
& Johnson) | Approved by the FDA on December 6, 1996 for the “pulse treatment”
of onychomycosis of the fingernails. Available in 100 mg capsules.
The dose is 200 mg twice daily for the first week of each month for
two months. (The dose of 200 mg daily given for 12 weeks for
onychomycosis of the toenails is already established.) |
Antipsoriatic |
Acitretin
Soriatane®
Roche
| Approved by the FDA on October 28, 1996 for the treatment of
severe recalcitrant psoriasis. Soriatane® will be available in 10 and
25 mg tablets. |
Antiviral |
Penciclovir
cream 1%
Denavir®
SmithKline
Beecham
| Approved by the FDA for the treatment of recurrent herpes labialis.
This is the first topical antiviral cleared for this indication in
the USA. |
Valacyclovir
Valtrex®
Glaxo-Wellcome
| The FDA has approved valacyclovir for the new indication of treating
first episode genital herpes. This indication is also approved by the
Canadian HPB. |
Hair
transplantation |
Laser device
Sharplan
Silktouch laser®
Laser Industries
| Received marketing approval from the FDA early this month. It is
claimed to be the first such technology to be approved by the FDA
for use in installing hair plugs. |
Head lice
prophylaxis |
Permethrin lotion
Nix®
Warner-Lambert
| Permethrin was recently approved by the FDA for prophylactic use
during head lice epidemics. OTC. |
Parasitic
infections |
Ivermectin
Mectizan®
(6 mg tablet)
Merck
| Approved by the FDA on November 22, 1996 for the treament of
strongyloidiasis and onchocerciasis.
*Undergoing clinical trial for human scabies. |
