FDA Approves Paratek's Bacterial Pneumonia, Skin Infection Treatment

Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc. PRTK shares reacted positively following the announcement of a Food and Drug Administration's approved treatment.

What To Know

The company announced FDA approval of Nuzyra, for the treatment of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP), as well as acute skin infections.

According to company data, Nuzyra is a modernized tetracycline, taken orally, which exhibits activity across several types of bacteria, such as Gram-positive, Gram-negative, atypicals and drug resistant strains. This will be the first antibiotic approved of its kind for nearly 20 years.

“NUZYRA offers clinicians the ability to treat patients with the IV and transition them home to complete treatment with the oral formulation. This potentially helps reduce hospitalizations and the costs associated with hospital stays,” Paratek COO Evan Loh said in a press release.

Why It’s Important

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug-resistant bacteria causes 2 million illnesses and over 20,000 deaths each year in the United States.

“Treating pneumonia and skin infections has become increasingly complex as existing antibiotic therapies sometimes have reduced efficacy as resistance continues to grow. This reality makes it increasingly challenging to provide safe and effective treatments to patients,” said Keith Kaye, Director of Clinical Research at the University of Michigan.

“There continues to be a need for novel antibiotics with both IV and oral formulations, such as NUZYRA, to help physicians stay ahead of the evolving resistance landscape.”

What’s Next

Roughly 2,000 adult patients have received the treatment, and the company plans on making it fully available in the first quarter of 2019. Paratek has developed plans to conduct marketing studies in pediatrics and other areas.

Paratek's stock traded up more than 7 percent to $9.93 per share.

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