Eli Lilly and Co. received approval from the FDA for Cymbalta (duloxetine HCl) for the management of chronic musculoskeletal pain. This indication was established in studies in patients with chronic low back pain and chronic pain due to osteoarthritis. This is Cymbalta’s fifth indication approved by the FDA.

Cymbalta, a non-narcotic pain reliever, has been shown to significantly reduce chronic low back pain and chronic pain due to osteoarthritis. It is believed that Cymbalta helps lessen pain by enhancing the body's natural pain suppressing system by increasing the activity of serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain and spinal cord. The most commonly observed adverse events in Cymbalta-treated patients with chronic pain due to osteoarthritis were nausea, fatigue and constipation.

"It's important that people with chronic musculoskeletal pain have different treatments available to them because responses to medications can be highly individualized," said Robert Baker, M.D., global development leader for psychiatry and pain disorders at Lilly. "This is why we are happy to be able to provide doctors and patients with a new option."