FDA Approves First Oral Treatment for Postpartum Depression

The Food and Drug Administration approved a drug named Zuranolone for women suffering from postpartum depression. The drug is the first oral treatment for postpartum depression. The drug has been made by the drugmakers Sage Therapeutics and Biogen. Zuranolone, a once-daily medication that can be used for up to 14 days, has been approved by the agency for the treatment of postpartum depression (PPD) which afflict women 
following childbirth.

Director of the Division of  Psychiatry in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Dr. Tiffany Farchione said that the oral medication will prove extremely beneficial for women who are suffering from the PPD and intrusive thoughts during the period. Meanwhile, this is not the first time that Sage Therapeutics has come up with a PPD drug, before the approval of Zuranolone, the only approved option for treating postpartum depression was brexanolone' which was administered as an IV. This drug was also introduced by drugmakers Sage Therapeutics. 

According to Sage and Biogen, Zuranolone functions similarly to the fast-acting steroid Brexanolone, which binds to GABA receptors in the brain. This successfully restores the neurotransmitters that depressed patients alter.

Meanwhile, the drug which has been recently approved by the FDA will come with a warning on the box that patients will not be advised to drive or operate machinery for 12 hours after taking the pill. Women who will be on Zuranolone may suffer side effects such as drowsiness, fatigue, dizziness, diarrhoea, common cold and urinary tract infection. 

Further, the drug will require a clearance of a 90-day Drug Enforcement Administration scheduling process before it is made available in the market. Also, the companies mentioned that the drug Zuranolone is only approved for postpartum depression and not severe depression.