Rotigotine

Rotigotine is a non-ergot (or non-ergotamine) dopamine agonist drug and is indicated for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. It has been developed by the German pharmaceutical company Schwarz Pharma (today a subsidiary of the Belgian company UCB S.A.). Rotigotine is intended to be delivered through transdermal patches, so as to ensure a slow and constant dosage in a 24-hour period. The transdermal patch form of the drug has been given the trade name Neupro.

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The drug has been approved by the EMEA for use in the EU in 2006 and is today being sold in several European countries. 2007, the Neupro patch has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as the first transdermal treatment of Parkinson's disease in the United States. In their press release the FDA mentioned the following side effects (among others): "skin reactions at the patch site, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, drowsiness and insomnia... are typical of this drug class."

As of 2006, the phase III clinical trial results showed that the drug was able to significantly reduce off time and increase on time without troublesome dyskinesia.

See also

• Agonist