Wyeth's Effexor XR receives FDA approval for the treatment of panic disorder

By Angela McDaniels

Seattle, Nov. 21 - Wyeth Pharmaceuticals said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Effexor XR (venlafaxine HCl) for the treatment of adults with panic disorder.

This marks the first antidepressant approved for panic disorder since 2002, the company said.

Panic disorder affects 2.4 million American adults annually, Wyeth said. It is characterized by recurrent, unexpected panic attacks, defined as a discrete period of intense fear or discomfort in the absence of real danger, where four of 13 specific symptoms such as accelerated heart rate or fear of dying develop abruptly.

"Given the complicated, recurrent nature of panic disorder, it is imperative that physicians have new and effective treatment options, like Effexor XR, to offer patients," Alexander Bystritsky, director of the University of California-Los Angeles Anxiety Disorders Program, said in a company news release.

Madison, N.J.-based Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, a division of Wyeth, has products in the areas of women's health care, cardiovascular disease, central nervous system, inflammation, transplantation, hemophilia, oncology, vaccines and nutritional products.

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