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News
A new era for Parkinson's treatment has arrived. The FDA has approved tavapadon (Juvmo, AbbVie), the first-ever dopamine agonist to selectively target D1/D5 receptors in Parkinson's disease (PD). Unlike existing D2/D3 agonists — which carry risks like impulse control disorders and excessive sleepiness — tavapadon zeroes in on motor pathways, offering robust symptom control with a cleaner tolerability profile. It's available as a once-daily oral tablet, with or without levodopa.
A new era for Parkinson's treatment has arrived. The FDA has approved tavapadon (Juvmo, AbbVie), the first-ever dopamine agonist to selectively target D1/D5 receptors for Parkinson's disease (PD). Unlike existing D2/D3 agonists — which carry risks like impulse control disorders and excessive sleepiness — tavapadon focuses on motor pathways, offering robust symptom control with a cleaner tolerability profile. It's available as a once-daily oral tablet, usable with or without levodopa.
Approval was based on data from the three-part TEMPO clinical trial program. In early PD patients (TEMPO-1 and TEMPO-2), tavapadon produced statistically significant improvements in daily living scores versus placebo. For patients already on levodopa experiencing motor fluctuations (TEMPO-3), adding tavapadon increased daily "on time" by 1.7 hours versus 0.6 hours with placebo, and reduced "off time" by 1.9 hours versus 0.9 hours. Notably, after 85 weeks, 93–94% of participants did not need to increase their levodopa dose or start levodopa.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: For the millions living with PD, tavapadon represents the first genuinely new mechanistic approach in decades — one that can be used from early to advanced disease, potentially reducing treatment burden and improving quality of life for both patients and caregivers.
