Heroin antidote Narcan as a nasal spray gets clearance from US regulators

FDA approval for new version of product, based on the drug naloxone, which Irish maker says is cheaper and easier to use than injections

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved an easy-to-use version of the lifesaving drug that reverses heroin and prescription painkiller overdoses.

The reformulated drug, sold as Narcan, comes as a nasal spray and should help first responders, police and others deliver the antidote in emergency situations. Known generically as naloxone, it reverses the effects of opioids - drugs that include legal painkillers such as oxycodone and illegal narcotics such as heroin.