Merck diabetes pill combination wins U.S. approval

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Merck & Co Inc. has won U.S. approval to sell a medicine called Janumet that combines two diabetes medicines into a single pill, the Food and Drug Administration said on Saturday.

Janumet pairs Merck's drug Januvia with a widely used, older generic medicine called metformin. Both drugs help control blood sugar in patients with Type 2 diabetes, the most common form.

Januvia was approved last October as the first medicine in a new class called dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors, or DPP-4 inhibitors. Januvia's generic name is sitagliptin.

FDA spokeswoman Kimberly Rawlings said the agency approved Janumet late on Friday.