A new research has revealed that the drug naloxegol may be able to help patients suffering constipation caused by pain relief medicines.

Globally, approximately 28 million to 35 million, or nearly half, of patients taking opioids for long-term pain develop constipation and they get sub-optimal results from laxatives.

William Chey, the gastroenterologist said that the results showed rapid and sustained improvement in the patients, without compromising their pain management.

Naloxegol is an investigational peripherally-acting mu-opioid receptor antagonist, which has been specifically designed for the treatment of opioid-induced constipation (OIC), a common and often debilitating side effect of prescription medicines used to treat osteoarthritis and chronic back pain.

A New Drug Application (NDA) for naloxegol was accepted by the US Food and Drug Administration on Nov. 19, 2013 and it is also under regulatory review with health agencies in the European Union and Canada.

The study is published online in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Source: Zee news