FDA Postpones Decision on Application for New Opioid

An opioid intended to treat chronic low back pain without getting the user high is one of several drugs in the development pipeline that could have an impact on workers’ comp. Nektar Therapeutics submitted a new drug application to the Food and Drug Administration in May 2018 for its NKTR-181, also known as loxicodegol. The drug is intended for the treatment of chronic low back pain in patients who are new to opioid therapy. Nektar said its drug, like other opioids, provides pain relief. But because it enters the brain slowly, it relieves pain “without the inherent high levels of...