The nonaddictive painkiller suzetrigine (Journavx) is as effective for acute pain as a common opioid treatment

The drug, shown to be almost as effective as opioids for short-term pain, is the first fundamentally new kind of painkiller to win FDA approval in more than 20 years.

Suzetrigine prevents pain signals from reaching the brain and doesn't give an opioid-like high, making it non-addictive—but it's expensive.