The FDA has approved the first generic versions of Requip (ropinirole hydrochloride) tablets for the treatment of moderate to severe Restless Legs Syndrome. Requip tablets have been approved in the 0.25 milligram, 0.5 milligram, 1 milligram, 2 milligram, 3 milligram, and 4 milligram dosages. Roxane Laboratories Inc., Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Par Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. have received approval to market the ropinirole hydrochloride tablets.

The FDA has granted approval for the Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) filed by Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. to market the generic Cerebyx®, fosphenytoin sodium injection. The drug is used in generalized convulsive status epilepticus and for the prevention and treatment of seizures when neurosurgery is being performed. The fosphenytoin sodium injection is available in 100 mg Phenytoin sodium equivalents/2 mL and 500 mg Phenytoin sodium equivalents/10 mL single dose vials.

A new study published in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry has indicated that Eli Lilly and Co.’s Prozac, a commonly prescribed antidepressant, may be an agent in slowing down the disease process of the relapsing remitting form of multiple sclerosis (MS). The patients who were treated with Prozac had fewer new areas of inflammation than those treated with placebo just after eight weeks, the period the drug takes to begin relieving depression.