Amarin stock remained halted late Friday after U.S. regulators approved its drug, Vascepa, to cut down on cardiovascular events in patients with high triglycerides.
This is the first Food and Drug Administration-approved medicine to lower the risk of events like a heart attack or stroke in patients with high triglycerides, a type of fat found in the blood. The agency approved Amarin's (AMRN) Vascepa in patients with triglycerides at 150 milligrams per deciliter or higher. A normal level is anything less than that.
"The FDA recognizes there is a need for additional medical treatments for cardiovascular disease," John Sharretts, acting deputy director of the Division of Metabolism and Endocrinology Products in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in a written statement.