FDA Says Flu Drug Dangerous, Tells Maker to Strengthen Warnings

Reuters news service reports that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has told the maker of the flu drug Relenza to strengthen warning labels on the drug after receiving reports of patient hospitalization and possibly deaths that could be linked to it.

Last year, the British government ruled that Relenza should not be reimbursed on the state-run National Health Service because there are doubts about its benefits and high costs.

As a result of the FDA's findings, Glaxo has written to doctors warning them that the drug may have contributed to breathing problems in patients with respiratory problems as well as to a decline in respiratory function in patients without a history of airway disease.

Glaxo hopes to offer new information to show that Relenza is valuable to "older" flu sufferers.

We hope that would not be those older patients who suffer from a decline in respiratory function without a history of airway disease.