New Drug Approved to Take On Antibiotic-Resistant MRSA

The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new drug to treat MRSA, the "contagious and antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria that leads to potentially dangerous infection" and can't be contained by typical antibiotics.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new drug to treat MRSA, the "contagious and antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria that leads to potentially dangerous infection" and can't be contained by typical antibiotics. The World Health Organization has become increasingly worried about antibiotic resistant bacteria. In April, they said "The problem is so serious that it threatens the achievements of modern medicine." In the United States, about 200 people die from these sorts of infections every day.

The new drug, Dalvance, is part of the FDA's Generating Antibiotic Incentives Now program, which aims at stopping antibiotic resistant bacteria like MRSA. It also qualified for the Fast Track review program, which gained it five years of market exclusivity. The program gave a big push to pharmaceutical companies, who often focus on profitable drugs over the development of more complicated life-saving treatments like Dalvance.

Dalvance was tested in two clinical trials, totaling 1,289 adults with skin infections. They found the side effects were nausea, headache, diarrhea and elevated liver enzymes. They also determined the dosage would come as two intravenous doses, though pricing has not been set for the dosage yet.