The Short And Controversial Life Of Zohydro Comes To An End

US FDA’s approval of the opioid over resounding opposition of an advisory committee has haunted the agency, and it has imperiled both of Robert Califf’s nominations to be commissioner. The latest company to own Zohydro stopped selling it and FDA withdrew approval of its NDA.

Zohydro ER tombstone
Zohydro (hydrocodone bitartrate) has been withdrawn from the market • Source: Nielsen Hobbs; the Pink Sheet | Alamy images

The quiet end for Zohydro ER – buried in a list of drugs whose approvals are being withdrawn by the US FDA – belies the turmoil the opioid created for the agency.

FDA announced in a Federal Register notice to be published on 2 February that it is withdrawing approval of...

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