New and old: notable drug developments for clinical practice

Excerpt

Which drug to use and when for a particular condition is frequently a complex issue relating to individual patient characteristics and circumstance. However, it seems that it was only relatively recently that this quandary was a luxury more commonly associated with non-neurological diseases. However, the last 30 years has seen the exponential development of therapeutic interventions for neurological disease together with increasing and possibly excessive use of trial-related acronyms. Given current requirements for complex trial construction and meeting of regulatory demands, the development of a novel proven therapeutic intervention in area of need is no mean task and commonly followed by a prolonged period where indications are refined and then a more pragmatic analysis of treatment algorithms ensues. …