Durect's non-opioid painkiller brushes aside checkered past, gaining FDA approval in shoulder surgeries

After a long and often bumpy ride, Durect’s non-opioid painkiller has received the FDA’s endorsement.

US regulators approved the sustained-release bupivacaine solution for use up to 72 hours after certain shoulder surgeries, Durect announced Tuesday morning. The drug is called Posimir, and its approval breathes life into a company that once teetered on penny stock territory after the program racked up two trial failures and a CRL.