The Food and Drug Administration approved a much-anticipated blood thinning drug from pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly. That FDA approval however, comes with a warning.

The drug come with a warning that it can cause internal bleeding. The drug, called Effient, can cause "significant , sometimes fatal, bleeding." This reason was one of the reasons that the drug went through such a delayed approval; the FDA was uncertain whether the benefits of the drug outweighed the risks of internal bleeding.

Effient can now be a major competitor to Plavix, another blood thinner currently on the market. According to the New York Times, "like Plavix, Effient prevents blood platelets from sticking together and forming potentially dangerous clots. But while Plavix is approved for use in a wide range of patients, Effient is approved only for those undergoing angioplasty, a procedure in which an inflatable balloon is used to clear arteries clogged with plaque, which are often propped open with a stent."

Like with all drugs and treatments, physicians and payers must make certain that Effient is indeed the best route of treatment for a patient. Referring to an independent review organization like AllMed can ensure that the decisions made by payers and hospitals are the best ones.

To read the full article, click here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/11/health/policy/11drug.html?_r=1&ref=health