Zyprexa is classified as an atypical antipsychotic, a medication which belongs to a pharmaceutical category of psychotropics or medications that affect the mind. Antipsychotic medicines are used to treat symptoms of psychosis in schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, such as delusions, hallucinations, unfounded fears, and hearing voices. The medicine may also be prescribed as treatment for acute mixed or manic episodes of bipolar disorder to alleviate symptoms such as anxiety, irritability, sleep disturbances and others.

The Zyprexa website also notes that a patient being prescribed the medication should inform his or her physician if he or she is 65 years old or older and suffering from dementia as Zyprexa, is taking other medications and supplements, has a history for diabetes and heart conditions, has vision problems, etc. since Zyprexa may have adverse effects in such cases. Women who are pregnant or are planning to have a baby should also be cautious about taking Zyprexa. Moreover, breastfeeding mothers must also be wary since Zyprexa may be ingested by the infant through the mother’s milk.

One is a class suit filed by the families of patients who have died while taking Zyprexa, due to medical complications that were aggravated by the use of the medication. Among these were diabetics whose conditions apparently took a turn for the worse after they started taking Zyprexa. Research indicated that diabetics taking the medication are at higher risk than those not taking the medication.

The litigation alleges that the company did not provide sufficient warning in their labels or product literature about the potentially lethal effect of the drug on patients that were already at risk.

The second issue stems from allegations of ‘off-label promotions’ engaged into by the company in order to boost sales of the medication. ‘Off-labeling’ happens when doctors prescribe the medication for something it was not intended for in the first place. In the case of Zyprexa, there were instances reported of the medication being prescribed for dementia – a disorder it was not supposed to treat.

Eli Lilly supposedly embarked on marketing campaigns aimed at promoting off-label use, with its sales personnel being encouraged to inform doctors that Zyprexa could be used to treat dementia and other illnesses. One offshoot of this was that several states reported increased charges against their Medicaid funds for Zyprexa prescriptions, coming from patients who were not supposed to be prescribed the drug.

The third controversy is more legal than medical and concerns First Amendment (freedom of speech and the press) rights, stemming from internal Eli Lilly documents supporting allegations of inappropriate actions on the part of the company in the first two issues cited above, which were leaked to the media, especially the New York Times which printed a series of articles on the medical issues.

The Federal Court judge hearing the case has ordered an embargo on the publication of the documents; unfortunately, these had already made their way to the internet and were being posted in various pages hosted from within and outside the United States. The issue has been taken up by various non-government organizations and Freedom of Information advocates who are claiming that this ruling is an infringement on their rights.