An advisory panel to the FDA has voted 10 to 4 against approval of omalizumab (Xolair®) for the treatment of asthma in children aged 6 to 11 years. The committee was split evenly on the effectiveness of the drug but voted by 9 to 5 that its safety record had not been adequately assessed. A member of the FDA's pulmonary and allergy products division told the meeting that while the drug had met its targets in clinical trials, its effectiveness in children was "invariably small and clinically modest." A decision by the FDA on this proposed paediatric use is expected in January 2010. The drug is already approved for use in children aged 6 to 11 years in the EU.