MOH approves new drugs for UAE market

Dubai: The Drugs Registration and Pricing Higher National Committee at the Ministry of Health has approved 126 new drugs used mainly in the treatment of various diseases such as tumours, diabetes, high blood pressure, multiple sclerosis, allergies and arthritis.

Of the total, there are around 105 generic medicines.

The committee approved these drugs on the basis of their availability to satisfy the needs of patients and pharmaceutical security in the UAE, said Dr Ameen Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Medical Practices and Licensing and acting chairman of the committee.

The innovative drugs, Dr Al Amiri noted, have been approved for the first time in the region. He added that the UAE is one of the first international and regional countries to register modern and innovative drugs in order to provide them for patients and ensure their efficiency and safety. The new medicine used for the treatment of lung cancer, meanwhile, makes UAE the third country in the world to register such a drug.

Several clinical studies have also been made to study two new drugs for the treatment of paediatric diabetes and bone marrow deficiency.

The committee has likewise approved a study to classify all controlled drugs with the aim of introducing a new drug classification system.

Dr Al Amiri highlighted the risks of the increasing number of traded and distributed steroid and hormonal drug without any supervision. He said this has become a problem in many sports centres in the UAE. He called on community members who use these drugs to stop using them as non-rational usage of these drugs have negative side effects to the body in the long run.