For treatment of diabetes, Galvus (vildagliptin), manufactured by Novartis, works to improve pancreatic function in patients with type 2 diabetes. The key ingredient, vildagliptin, supports incretin hormones which stimulate the pancreas, allowing it to produce more insulin to counter rising levels of blood glucose. It also reduces the liver’s glucose production with the increased insulin and decreased levels of the glucagon hormone. For treating diabetes, Galvus was first approved in 2008 by the European Medicines Agency for use in the European Union, in combination with other oral anti-diabetes drugs such as metformin. In 2012, it was approved in China. Galvus is now used in over 90 countries in Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. However, Galvus has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in the U.S. In 2007, the FDA requested additional clinical data about possible issues with kidney impairment and skin lesions. …