Crystalline form IV of agomelatine, a process for its preparation and pharmaceutical compositions containing it

A method for treating a living animal body, including a human, afflicted with sleep disorders, stress, anxiety, seasonal affective disorders or severe depression, cardiovascular pathologies, pathologies of the digestive system, insomnia and fatigue due to jetlag, schizophrenia, panic attacks, melancholia, appetite disorders, obesity, insomnia, psychotic disorders, epilepsy, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, senile dementia, various disorders associated with normal or pathological ageing, migraine, memory loss, Alzheimer's disease, cerebral circulation disorders, and also in sexual dysfunction, as ovulation inhibitors, immunomodulators and cancers comprising the step of administering to the living animal body, including a human, an amount of crystalline form IV of the compound of formula (I):

• wherein the compound exhibits essentially the following powder X-ray diffraction diagram, measured using a diffractometer (copper anticathode) and expressed in terms of inter-planar distance d (expressed in Å), Bragg's angle 2 theta (expressed in degrees), intensity and relative intensity (expressed as a percentage with respect to the most intense ray):
• 2-Theta (°)
• d (Å)
• Intensité
• exp.
• exp.
• (%)
• 5.04
• 17.524
• 8
• 10.16
• 8.703
• 68
• 10.51
• 8.409
• 9
• 15.22
• 5.818
• 28
• 16.75
• 5.288
• 39
• 17.41
• 5.089
• 60
• 18.03
• 4.915
• 100
• 18.81
• 4.714
• 71
• 20.48
• 4.333
• 37
• 21.61
• 4.110
• 16
• 23.27
• 3.819
• 11
• 24.04
• 3.699
• 26
• 24.27
• 3.665
• 42
• 24.77
• 3.591
• 24
• 25.57
• 3.481
• 13
• 27.06
• 3.292
• 6
• 27.95
• 3.190
• 11
• which is effective for the alleviation of the disorder.