The development of new analgesics over the past 50 years: a lack of real breakthrough drugs.

Quite a provocative titel! A single author article in one of the leading journals for anesthesiologists specailizing in the treatment of pain. What does the author exactly say?

He identified fifty-nine analgesics introduced in the peroid 1960 to 2009 and analysed these drugs.

Seven of these drugs he regarded as having novel molecular targets, but he stated: however, only one, sumatriptan, was sufficiently effective to motivate the introduction of many similar drugs acting at the same target (triptans).

Much literature foccused on morphine, not a very new drug indeed. I am reminded of the titel of a publication: a Drug is the couse of Many New Publications, or.... a paper is the result of putting a drug in a rat... This is also the authors idea, if I may quote him:

Very intensive research efforts directed at diverse molecular targets related to pain mechanisms produced thousands of publications, but those efforts have not yet yielded new analgesics with sufficient effectiveness to change the share of publications on opioids or nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs.

Morphine and aspirine dominate

Morphine and aspirinboth age-old drugs continue to dominate biomedical publications, lthough for neuropathic pain these drrugs do nat have much to offer.

The author concludes that there is a  "lack of real breakthroughs in analgesic drug development despite intense research efforts. Possible factors contributing to the apparent drought of novel analgesics are discussed.".... ^[1]

From the Centre for the study and treatment of neuropathic pain and neuropathy in Soest, the Nertherlands

This site helps patients and treating physicians, neurologists, anesthesiologists and other pain specialists to find the best and most up to date research findings related to neuropathy and neuropathic pain and the treatment thereof.

In our centre we are specialised in treating patients suffering from neuropathic pain and neuropathy following an Integrated Medicine concept. Part of our activities are within the field of consultation. We assist pharmaceutical companies in R&D strategies related to finding new drugs to treat neuropathic pain and neuropathy.

March 2010, Jan M. Keppel Hesselink, MD, PhD.

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