FDA Finally Approves Bydureon

February 6th, 2012 written by Michael O’Leary

Try, try again. After three tries BYDUREON, the once-a-week version of Byetta received FDA approval last Friday, Jan. 27. The approval follows two earlier rejections by the FDA, which each time asked for more data.

BYETTA® (exenatide) was developed by Amylin Pharmeceuticals and Eli Lily. The twice-daily injection drug was the first glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist to be approved by the FDA for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. GLP-1 stimulates the release of insulin when glucose levels become too high. (Published site)

Do Byetta and Victoza Help You Lose Weight?

written by Michael O’Leary

Dr. Tina Vilsboll

If like many people, a component of your type 2 diabetes is being overweight, then the new class of drugs, called GLP-1 agonists, may help you lose more weight than older oral drugs for controlling blood sugar.

That’s the conclusion of a new study that analyzed the data from 25 trials involving 6,411 patients conducted over the last seven years.  The first GLP-1 drug to receive FDA approval was Byetta^®, which is injected twice daily into the abdomen, thigh or shoulder an hour before breakfast and dinner. Victoza^® is a long-acting GLP-1 agonist injected once daily. Bydureon^® is a once-a-week injection formula of Byetta. (Published site)