Edurant OKed as HIV treatment by FDA

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new antiretroviral treatment for HIV made by Johnson & Johnson, the agency said Friday.

The FDA approved J&J subsidiary Tibotec Therapeutics’ Edurant (rilpivirine) as a treatment for use in combination with other HIV drugs in adults who have not been treated before.

“Patients may respond differently to various HIV drugs or experience varied side effects,” FDA Office of Antimicrobial Products director Edward Cox said. “FDA’s approval of Edurant provides an additional treatment option for patients who are starting HIV therapy.”

The drug belongs to a class known as non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, or NNRTIs, and is designed for use as part of a highly active antiretroviral therapy, or HAART, regimen.