From: Reuters

Patients and doctors should be aware of possible kidney function problems with Eli Lilly (LLY.N) and Amylin Pharmaceuticals' (AMLN.O) Byetta diabetes drug, U.S. health regulators said on Monday.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration received 78 reports of problems with kidney function in patients using Byetta from April 2005 through October 2008.

Nearly 7 million prescriptions for the drug were written during roughly the same period, so the agency noted the number of kidney problems represented a "small percentage" of the total number of patients on the drug.

Nonetheless, the FDA approved changes to Byetta's prescribing label to include information about the kidney function reports.

"Health care professionals and patients taking Byetta should pay close attention to any signs or symptoms of kidney problems," said Amy Egan, an FDA official in the agency's division of metabolism and endocrinology products. (Reporting by Lewis Krauskopf; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)