BRIEF—FDA approves eye drug Rocklatan

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Rocklatan (netarsudil and latanoprost ophthalmic solution) 0.02%/0.005% to reduce elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension, says the drug’s maker Aerie Pharmaceuticals.

Rocklatan is a once-daily eye drop that is a fixed-dose combination of latanoprost, the most widely-prescribed prostaglandin analog (PGA), and netarsudil, the active ingredient in Rhopressa (netarsudil ophthalmic solution) 0.02%, a first-in-class Rho kinase (ROCK) inhibitor specifically designed to target the trabecular meshwork (the eye’s principal drainage pathway).

The diseased trabecular meshwork is considered to be the main cause of elevated IOP in open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension. Rhopressa works by restoring outflow through the trabecular meshwork, while latanoprost increases fluid outflow through a secondary mechanism known as the uveoscleral pathway.

Aerie launched Rhopressa in the USA in April 2018 and the company plans to launch Rocklatan in the USA in the second quarter of 2019.