TDT 077
Topical Treatment of the Pain Associated with Post Herpetic Neuralgia
TDT-077 is a local anaesthetic formulated with Transfersome® technology for local delivery with a long-lasting local therapeutic effect. The drug chosen has been in wide-spread use for a number of years. It is being developed initially to target post-herpetic neuralgia ('PHN'), the severe neuropathic pain that occurs in the months after a shingles attack has occurred. The pain occurs in about 20% of shingles cases, with growing prevalence amongst the elderly. The syndrome is currently treated variously by local anaesthetics, especially in form of patches, as well as anti-depressants, anti-convulsants, and opioids.
TDT-077 is expected to have advantages over current local anaesthetics due to its longer lasting effect combined with the relative ease of application through spray or gel compared to a patch. Topically applied, TDT-077 is expected to have few or none of the side effects associated with some of the systemic anticonvulsants indicated for PHN.
Market
More than 500,000 patients in the USA alone experience attacks of shingles annually, and as much as 20% of this group go on to develop symptoms of PHN. The condition can persist for some weeks, and is distressing or even debilitating.