Drug news
NICE recommends Moventig (naloxegol) for treatment of opioid-induced constipation- AstraZeneca
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in new final guidelines has recommended Moventig (naloxegol) from AstraZeneca as a cost-effective option for treating opioid-induced constipation in adults whose symptoms have not adequately responded to laxatives.
Comment: Moventig (Movantik in the US) is the first once-daily oral peripherally-acting mu-opioid receptor antagonist (PAMORA) to be approved in the European Union (EU). Opioids play an important role in chronic pain relief and work by binding to mu-receptors in the central nervous system, but they also bind to mu-receptors in the gastrointestinal tract, which can result in patients suffering from opioid-induced constipation.