After a long and tortuous development Astrazeneca plc’s anifrolumab has been approved by the FDA for the autoimmune disease systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), setting up a rivalry with its U.K.-based counterpart Glaxosmithkline plc. The first-in-class type 1 interferon receptor antibody, the first new drug for the disease in a decade, will be marketed under the brand name Saphnelo for adults with moderate to severe disease who are receiving standard therapy.

The FDA has posted a final rule for its intended use policy for devices, drugs and biologics, which formalizes the elimination of the totality-of-the-evidence approach to determining the manufacturer’s intended use. While the final rule says that mere knowledge of off-label use cannot be the sole determinant of the manufacturer’s intended use, the rule still allows the FDA to infer intended use by “any relevant source of evidence,” a term that may be sufficiently squishy to be functionally equivalent to the controversial totality-of-the-evidence standard.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects about 8 million Americans a year, disrupting lives with nightmares, memory loss, feelings of isolation and other negative effects. Treatment typically involves psychotherapy, but many patients do not find relief. To that end, the FDA has granted breakthrough device designation to Evren Technologies Inc. for its noninvasive Phoenix earbud device for treating PTSD.

Biofourmis Inc. won a breakthrough devices nod from the FDA for its Biovitalshf solution, a digital therapeutic for patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). The company, which is pursuing the de novo pathway for the therapy, plans to launch a pivotal trial next month. Biovitalshf is intended to augment guideline-directed use of heart failure medications to manage patients in combination with traditional pharmacotherapy. The software application integrates physiological monitoring, symptoms and signs reporting, patient engagement, medication management and communications to provide clinicians with personalized and specific recommendations about their medication.

The FDA’s device center has a mantra of sorts when it comes to the details, or lack thereof, in guidance, which is “talk to us early and often.” For device makers eyeing the brain-computer interface (BCI) device space, this mantra has been applied to the question of pivotal study enrollment numbers, suggesting that some sponsors will find their pivotal studies come with a case of sticker shock sufficient to force them to rethink their research and developmental plans.

Ushering in a new era for the U.S. biosimilar marketplace, the FDA, on July 28, approved its first interchangeable biosimilar, which also will be the first to bring biosimilar competition to the U.S. insulin space. The honor went to Viatris Inc.’s Semglee, which the FDA recognized as both biosimilar to and interchangeable with Sanofi SA’s blockbuster drug Lantus (insulin glargine), a long-acting insulin analogue.

Medtronic plc got a thumbs up from the FDA for two Accurhythm algorithms to detect atrial fibrillation and asystole in patients who have heart rhythm abnormalities. The new artificial intelligence (AI)-based algorithms are designed for use on the company’s Linq II insertable cardiac monitor (ICM). Dublin-based Medtronic said the Accurhythm AI algorithms will be available on its Carelink Network later this year for use with all implanted Linq II devices in the U.S.

The FDA’s July 27 webinar on medical device servicing and remanufacturing lent some clarity to the terms of a recent draft guidance on the subject, but there are several overarching policy concerns. The FDA’s Joshua Silverstein said on the webinar that the agency sees servicing as a type of manufacturing, a view that is contradicted by the Medical Imaging & Technology Alliance, which indicated earlier this year that third-party servicers are probably not subject to the regulations applied to manufacturers.