FDA Approves Inhalable Diabetes Drug Afrezza

The Food and Drug Administration says it has approved a long-delayed inhalable diabetes medication to help patients control their blood sugar levels.

The FDA cleared MannKind Corp.‘s drug Afrezza, a fast-acting form of insulin, for adults with the most common form of diabetes, which affects more than 25 million Americans. The approval decision comes more than three years after the agency first asked MannKind to run additional clinical studies on the drug.

Afrezza, an insulin powder, comes in a single-use cartridge and is designed to be inhaled at the start of a meal. MannKind has said patients using the drug can achieve peak insulin levels within 12 to 15 minutes. That compares to a wait time of an hour and a half or more after patients inject insulin.

For more information, see http://www.mannkindcorp.com/product-pipeline-diabetes-afrezza.htm