Yesterday, Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (VRX) announced the failure of its drug candidate, retigabine, in a mid-stage study. The trial evaluated retigabine for pain associated with postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), which is common in shingles. The company’s shares closed down 8.5% at $ 24.85.

Retigabine was tested in 187 PHN patients versus placebo for a period of up to ten weeks in approximately 50 locations. The drug was administered once daily in doses of 300 mg to 900 mg. In the final week, patients rated their pain on a scale of zero to ten. While retigabine was generally well tolerated, the study failed to meet its pre-specified primary efficacy endpoint. Valeant is analyzing the data further.

Shingles is an acute infection caused by herpes zoster, the same virus that causes chickenpox. It is characterized by great pain and involves inflammation of sensory nerves. It causes numbness and itching followed by

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Sonus Pharma (SNUS) is on the verge of a major catalyst in the form of pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial results