Zyprexa Alert: Side Effects & Litigation

Zyprexa®, manufactured by Eli Lilly & company, is an "atypical" anti-psychotic medication that received FDA approval for the treatment of schizophrenia in September 1996. Since that time, Zyprexa® has been approved for treatment of acute bipolar mania and is regularly prescribed for mental disorders ranging from schizophrenia, dementia, autism, aggressive behavior, personality disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder to severe depression. Many of these conditions are common and require life-long treatment.

In the past year:

-Zyprexa® was associated with a 37% increase in the risk of development of diabetes as compared to other atypical anti-psychotic medications.

-An article appearing in a leading pharmaceutical publication states, "The onset of hypoglycemia may be rapid and severe, the association is not dose-dependent and the risk does not vanish with extended therapy."

-The FDA asked Eli Lilly to add a warning about the risk of diabetes and other hypoglycemia-related diseases associated with Zyprexa®.

-Zyprexa's® label now lists diabetes as a potential "adverse event." Nations such as Japan and the U.K. have required warnings concerning Zyprexa® and diabetes for years.

-Severe cases have been reported of patients developing diabetic coma induced by severe insulin deficiency.

-The American Diabetes Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity issued a joint statement confirming the association between Zyprexa® and diabetes. Twenty three deaths have been associated with Zyprexa® use to date.

-The U.S. Attorney General's Office has impaneled a grand jury to look into fraudulent advertising practices of Eli Lilly in promoting Zyprexa for off label uses.