The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has asked the makers of six atypical antipsychotic drugs to update product labeling to include a warning about a possible link with diabetes, The Associated Press reported. The atypical antipsychotic drugs includes Zyprexa by Eli Lilly & Co., Clozaril by Novartis, Risperdal by Janssen, Seroquel by AstraZeneca, Geodon by Pfizer, and Abilify by Bristol Myers Squibb.
The FDA’s request follows a recent study of U.S. military veterans that linked Type 2 diabetes to Zyprexa, Risperdal and Seroquel.
“Risk for diabetes should be considered among patients with severe mental illness regardless of medication choice,” said Mauricio Tohen, MD, Dr. PH. Lilly Research Fellow and Leader of the Zyprexa Product Team.
The updated labeling further states that patients using the so-called atypical antipsychotics should be monitored for blood-sugar abnormalities, and those with risk factors for diabetes including obesity and family history of diabetes.
The Associated Press reported that, “The letter said there is no clear link between the drugs and diabetes, but further study is needed. More label changes could be required depending on future findings.”.
(via The Associated Press)
{ 5 comments }
My mother started taking Zyprexa at the end of 2001. In the last few months, we noticed that she is losing weight and took her to the doctor. Her fasting blood sugar is now 294 mg/dL, much higher than the normal range of 65 – 110 mg/dL. She now has diabetes, along with hypertension. That’s when I started looking for information on-line and found this webpage. We need to regroup with our docs and figure out a more balanced treatment for her. I just wonder, if her recent diagnosis of diabetes was truly linked to taking Zyprexa for over two years, would taking her off it reverse this side effect?
this increase in the level of glucose is suggesting among other posibilities damage to the pancreatic tissue …. it is recommendable start screening glucose (easy and cheap) and if high to check a full pancreatic function profile inmediatly: pancreatic amylase, glucagon, lipase ……
this could make safer tue usage of
zyprexa and to limit the damage of such
medication
Why is it that the family and or patient are not told of the side effects of this family of drugs before being treated with one of the drugs?
after taking geodon i was diagnosed with diabetes, what should i do
Lilly and the FDA fought labelling the metabolic dangers of this drug until the front page publicity became too intense to ignore. Up until the time of the publicity, Lilly went on pretending that this was the safest drug in the world. Unfortunately, by the time the warnings went on the labels (the FDA made all the atypicals put the warning on, even though the lethal culprit was Lilly, so as not to hurt Lilly’s sales)it was too late for my son, who died on October 5, 2002 of profound hyperglycemia due to Zyprexa.
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