Flu treatment and prevention drug linked to serious allergic reaction
A medicine used to treat and help prevent the flu may put patients at risk for a rare but life-threatening condition in which the skin peels off the body in sheets, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. The agency notified the public that it has approved safety label changes for Relenza (zanamivir) Inhalation Powder for oral inhalation. The Adverse Reactions section of the drug’s new safety label now includes a risk of rash, including serious cutaneous reactions (e.g. erythema multiforme, Stevens Johnson Syndrome, SJS, and toxic epidermal necrolysis, TEN).