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Cholesterol Drug Battle: Niaspan vs. Zetia 16 Nov 2009
Abbott Laboratories' Niaspan beat Merck's Zetia in a new study. CNBC's Mike Huckman has the details.

Cardiologist Grades Cholesterol Drug Study

16 Nov 2009

Abbott Laboratories' Niaspan beat Merck's Zetia in a new study. Dr. Steven Nissen, chairman of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at The Cleveland Clinic, shares his reaction with CNBC's Mike Huckman.

Merck's Cholesterol Drugs Under Pressure

16 Nov 2009

A new study is putting Merck's cholesterol drugs under pressure today, reports CNBC's Mike Huckman, with Ken Frazier, Merck Global Human Health president.

Cholesterol Drug Battle: Merck vs. Abbott Labs

16 Nov 2009

Abbott Laboratories' Niaspan beat Merck's Zetia in a new study. Barbara Ryan, pharma analyst at Deutsche Bank Securities, shares her reaction.

Cholesterol Drug Battle 16 Nov 2009
Abbott Laboratories' Niaspan beat Merck's Zetia in a new study. CNBC's Mike Huckman has the details.

Novo Nordisk CEO on Diabetes Epidemic

13 Nov 2009

Diabetes is a global epidemic that presents an estimated $25 billion drug and device market and some predict that number could double over the next several years. Lars Sorensen, CEO of Novo Nordisk, the world's largest diabetes care company, talks to CNBC's Mike Huckman.

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CNBC ON DIGG

Teva, Propofol And Michael Jackson

Published: Friday, 17 Jul 2009 | 4:08 PM ET

Text Size

By: Mike Huckman
Reporter

I’m writing this entry pretty straightforward and matter of factly for obvious reasons, I think.

The Food and Drug Administration today announced that Teva Pharmaceutical Industries [TEVA Loading... () ] is voluntarily recalling two lots of the anesthetic Propofol because there are higher levels of potentially fatal endotoxins.

The FDA announcement includes a link to a Teva press release dated yesterday. But the last press release posted in Teva’s “Media Room” on its website is dated July 13th.

Michael Jackson
AP

Propofol is the same drug that was reportedly found in Michael Jackson’s house.

Teva spokesperson Denise Bradley told me the Drug Enforcement Administration has contacted the company about one specific lot.

She couldn’t say why.

However, she also said that the two lots the company is recalling do not include the one lot the DEA asked about.

The FDA and Teva say they’ve received reports of 41 people in Arizona, Florida and Missouri who had a negative reaction to the drug after surgery. There are no reports of deaths. The nearly 58,000 vials in the two lots were reportedly filled at a plant in Southern California. If the drug were found in Jackson’s house, authorities can presumably trace where it came from.

Shares of TEVA, the world’s biggest generic drug company (it also makes brand-name products), were down today, but closed off of their intra-day lows.

Questions? Comments? and follow me on Twitter at mhuckman