[ noun ] an antipsychotic drug (trade name Clozaril) used as a sedative and for treatment-resistant schizophrenia; know to have few side effects <noun.artifact>
Laurie Flynn, executive director of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, an advocacy group of about 100,000 patient families, urged Sandoz to reduce the price of clozapine.
For her and others, clozapine is a protective shield.
The drug, known generically as clozapine, has proved effective in treating some schizophrenic patients who haven't been helped by other medications.
Groups attending a weeklong convention on psychiatric treatment want Sandoz Pharmaceuticals Corp. to provide more information on clozapine's cost.
"The severity and hopelessness of unremitting chronic schizophrenia was an important factor in the decision to approve clozapine," FDA Commissioner Frank Young said.