Press room ... 2000 archive

Lopinavir Warning

September 21, 2000

San Francisco, CA—Abbott Laboratories, the developers of lopinavir (Kaletra, formally ABT-378), recently issued a warning about the possibility of developing pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas) while on the drug. Less than one percent of the participants in the studies and expanded access program developed pancreatitis.

It's not possible to definitively say that people developed pancreatitis from taking lopinavir, as some were also taking other therapies known to cause pancreatitis like pentamidine, ddI (didanosine, Videx) and/or d4T (stavudine, Zerit). Additionally, some volunteers had very high triglyceride levels, which can result in pancreatitis. Nevertheless, people on lopinavir should carefully check their amylase levels (a marker for pancreatitis).

For more information on lopinavir, see the Lopinavir paper, New Anti-HIV Therapies paper and the lopinavir section in Drug Interactions.