Originally published February 26 2006
FDA approves powdered insulin that could make injections a thing of the past
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Exubera, the inhaled insulin manufactured by Pfizer, was approved recently by the FDA.
The Food and Drug Administration today approved the first inhaled insulin that could reduce or eliminate the need for diabetics to take injections to control their blood sugar.
The approval of Exubera, a powder that is breathed into the mouth and lungs through a 6-inch inhaler, was hailed by many health officials and is expected to be a blockbuster seller for drug maker Pfizer Inc.
Pfizer and supporters of Exubera said the powdered insulin could make life easier for the estimated 5 million Americans who take daily injections and will encourage many more diabetics who had shunned or feared using needles to start treatment.
"Until today, patients with diabetes who need insulin to manage their disease had only one way to treat their condition," said Steven Galson, director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, in a statement.
"It is our hope that the availability of inhaled insulin will offer patients more options to better control their blood sugars."
Exubera is short-acting insulin that can be taken before meals.
It would not replace long-acting insulin shots that many must take before bedtime.
"Exubera meets a critical medical need by offering a highly effective and needle-free alternative to diabetes pills and insulin injections to manage this complicated, debilitating disease," said Pfizer Chairman Hank McKinnell in a statement.
Safety concerns delayed the FDA review of Exubera for three years while additional clinical trials were conducted.
In September, an FDA advisory panel raised questions about how the drug would affect patients suffering from respiratory infections or were exposed to secondhand smoke.
Several also worried about the possibility of malfunctioning inhalers and a lack of African Americans in clinical trials of the drug.
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