Furious Seasons

May 18, 2009

Long-Term Trial Of Zyprexa Injectable Shows Lots Of Weight Gain

Eli Lilly, ever determined to have its long-acting Zyprexa injectable approved by the FDA, today released selected data from two long-term trials of the drug's use in treating schizophrenia. One trial was almost four years long, another was eight months.

In the four-year trial, the discontinuation rate was 46 percent and oodles of patients saw their body weight explode:

"Mean weight change was +1.88 kg, with 32.1 percent of patients experiencing greater than or equal to seven percent weight gain. Percentages of patients who increased from normal to high on fasting glucose, random total cholesterol, or random triglycerides were 5.5 percent, 5.2 percent and 14.3 percent, respectively. Mean Clinical Global Impressions-Severity scores remained stable throughout (2.9 at baseline to 2.8 at endpoint)."

Although not wildly different from results with oral Zyprexa, these results are concerning. I'm not sure how Lilly can continue to press the FDA on approving this drug when there are obviously such weight gain and potential diabetes issues attached to its use. But maybe that's why I am not in a corporate job.

Posted by Philip Dawdy at May 18, 2009 11:19 AM

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Comments

I know that when I took Zyprexa the first time my weight exploded. The hunger mechanism seems to be set on full with that drug.

Posted by: Deb at May 18, 2009 04:32 PM

I remember complaining to my psychiatrist that I had gained a horrendous amount of weight (50? 60 pounds) very quickly on olanzapine. His response? "That's just vanity." Uh, no, doc, that's just asking for diabetes. Anyway, my weight returned to normal once I was drug-free.

Posted by: Francesca Allan at May 18, 2009 05:32 PM

100 lb weight gain on a petite 5 ft.3" body at age 11, on Zyprexa to my daughter.(off-label use in a child)

Posted by: Stephany at May 18, 2009 06:32 PM

Francesca, your shrink and mine must have attended the same medical school or perhaps the same pharma seminar. Do they not get that gaining weight impacts health, including mental health? My shrink made the same kind of stupid comments when I discontinued meds due to weight gain. His opinion was that my life was already shitty so I shouldn't care if I got fat. Well, I did care.

Posted by: Lisa at May 18, 2009 07:14 PM

Manic depressive. I've gained 37kg (82lb) in 3 years on Zyprexa (Olanzapine). I'm 6'1", started with a 20mg dose, now down to 2.5mg and should be off it within 4 months (I hope).

Posted by: James at May 18, 2009 10:45 PM

Off of Zyprexa my daughter also lost all of the weight. The psych back then told her to "take a walk and don't drink soda". She FIRED HIM.

Posted by: Stephany at May 19, 2009 10:35 AM

Stephany, what brilliant advice your daughter received. That's like saying, "Take this appetite stimulant, but be sure you don't eat more than usual. We're going to sedate you, so be sure and increase your exercise." And we're the ones with the faulty brain wiring?

If only we didn't suffer from anosognosia, then we would understand that massive weight gain will make us healthy.

Posted by: Lisa at May 19, 2009 04:37 PM

Yeah and she was taking walks and never drank soda and monitored her diet better than most people, so she was completely insulted--and that speech the psych gave her is clearly found in the Zyprexa documents! The whole thing is criminal.

Posted by: Stephany at May 19, 2009 08:12 PM