STAT Plus: Zogenix wins approval for new drug to treat rare type of childhood epilepsy
A new drug from Zogenix that treats a rare and severe type of epilepsy was approved by the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday — a decision that clears the way for the company to compete against a recently approved medicine derived from marijuana.
The Zogenix drug, called Fintepla, is a liquid solution administered to children born with Dravet syndrome, a severe type of epilepsy that causes frequent and prolonged seizures starting within the first year of life. Approximately 250 children in the U.S. are born with Dravet each year, and it affects about 20,000 people overall.
