FDA Panel To Vote On Zyprexa

Today a panel of outside experts will examine advise the FDA on whether or not a new injectable version of the popular schizophrenia drug, Zyprexa, should be approved in the US. Zyprexa is currently available in a once-daily pill form, but the new formula, Zyprexa Adhera, can be injected into the muscle and last up to four weeks. The panel will weigh all aspects of the drug and available clinical trial data followed by a vote on whether the drug should or should not be approved.

The panel is also expected to advise the FDA on whether the drug should carry a black box warning for excessive for sedation that was seen in some clinical trials. Eli Lilly, the makers of Zyprexa, claim that excess sedation is likely caused by improper administration of the medication, rather than a reaction to the medication itself. This form of Zyprexa is intended to be injected into the muscle and slowly be absorber or the next few weeks, but if it were accidentally injected into the blood stream all of the medicine would be absorbed in only a few hours. It understandable that this could possible caused a patient to be excessively sedated.