Lilly’s Taltz now available in new, citrate-free formulation to reduce injection site pain

Eli Lilly and Company announced today the availability of a new, citrate-free formulation of Taltz (ixekizumab) injection 80 mg/mL. The new formulation, which was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in May 2022, includes the same active ingredient as the original formulation.

In a statement, Eli Lilly said that the new Taltz formulation significantly reduced injection site pain experienced by some people immediately following injection as shown by an 86 per cent decrease in a Visual Analog Scale (VAS) of pain versus the original formulation. Taltz is approved to treat adults and children aged six years and older with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy, adults with active psoriatic arthritis, active Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) and active non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA) with objective signs of inflammation.

Taltz citrate-free demonstrated a safety profile consistent with the original formulation, added the statement.

Further, according to the statement, the existing Taltz patients will not need a new prescription, nor should they experience a gap in their therapy. The new formulation is currently being shipped across the US with anticipated broad availability for both new and existing Taltz patients by the end of the month. In the interim, the original formulation of Taltz continues to be available until it is replaced by the citrate-free formulation. The citrate-free formulation of Taltz was approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in December 2021 with several markets launching now and many more anticipated in the coming months.