Febuxostat (INN; trade names Adenuric, Febutaz and Uloric ) is a urate lowering drug, an inhibitor of xanthine oxidase that is indicated for use in the treatment of hyperuricemia and chronic gout.
Febuxostat received marketing approval by the European Medicines Agency on April 21, 2008 and was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on February 16, 2009.
A study comparing febuxostat to allopurinol found that more individuals treated with febuxostat had decreased levels of uric acid, but there was no difference in the amount of initial gout flares or the surface area of gout tophi.
A committee of the British National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence concluded that although febuxostat had been shown to be more effective than fixed-dose (300 mg) allopurinol in lowering serum uric acid concentration, it had not been shown to be clinically more efficacious or cost effective compared with allopurinol when taken to control uric acid levels (up to 900 mg). However, the committee recommended febuxostat for people who are intolerant of allopurinol.
Read more about Febuxostat: Mechanism of Action, Clinical Efficacy, Cardiovascular Adverse Events (AE), Dosage and Administration, Side Effects, Drug Interactions