A Randomized Phase 2 KINETIC Trial Evaluating SAGE-324/BIIB124 in Individuals with Essential Tremor

BACKGROUND

SAGE-324/BIIB124 is an investigational positive allosteric modulator of GABAA receptors.

OBJECTIVE

KINETIC (NCT04305275), a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 2 study, evaluated SAGE-324/BIIB124 in individuals with essential tremor (ET).

METHODS

Individuals aged 18 to 80 years were randomly assigned 1:1 to orally receive 60 mg of SAGE-324/BIIB124 or placebo once daily for 28 days. The primary endpoint was change from baseline in The Essential Tremor Rating Assessment Scale-Performance Subscale (TETRAS-PS) Item 4 (upper-limb tremor) at day 29 with SAGE-324/BIIB124 versus placebo.

RESULTS

Between May 2020 and February 2021, 69 U.S. participants were randomly assigned to receive SAGE-324/BIIB124 (n = 34) or placebo (n = 35). There was a significant reduction from baseline in TETRAS-PS Item 4 at day 29 with SAGE-324/BIIB124 versus placebo (least squares mean [standard error]: -2.31 [0.401] vs. -1.24 [0.349], P = 0.0491). The most common treatment-emergent adverse events included somnolence, dizziness, fatigue, and balance disorder.

CONCLUSION

These results support further development of SAGE-324/BIIB124 for potential ET treatment. © 2024 Sage Therapeutics, Inc and The Authors. Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

Safety of Brexanolone in Adults with Postpartum Depression: Postmarketing Surveillance Data

BACKGROUND

Brexanolone is currently the only medication approved by the US FDA for the treatment of postpartum depression (PPD) in patients ≥15 years. Brexanolone is available commercially only through a restricted program (ZULRESSO® Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy; REMS) due to risk of excessive sedation or sudden loss of consciousness during administration.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this analysis was to assess the postmarketing safety of brexanolone in adults with PPD.

METHODS

The cumulative postmarketing adverse event (AE) listing from spontaneous and solicited individual case safety reports (ICSRs) received from March 19, 2019, through December 18, 2021, was analyzed. Clinical trial ICSRs were excluded. Reported AEs were classified as serious or nonserious as defined by FDA seriousness criteria and as listed or unlisted based on Table 2.0 within section 6 "Adverse Reactions" of the current brexanolone FDA-approved US Prescribing Information (PI).

RESULTS

Overall, 499 patients received brexanolone in this postmarketing surveillance analysis between June 2019 and December 2021 (postmarketing setting). There were 137 ICSRs with 396 total AEs: 15 serious unlisted, 2 serious listed, 346 nonserious unlisted, and 33 nonserious listed. In total, two serious and one nonserious listed excessive sedation AEs were reported-all resolved by stopping infusion and did not require any treatment; no loss of consciousness AEs were received.

CONCLUSION

Results from postmarketing surveillance data analysis are consistent with the safety profile of brexanolone for the treatment of PPD as described in the FDA-approved PI. No new safety concerns or new aspects of known risks requiring an update to the FDA-approved PI were identified.

Lanthanum carbonate: safety data after 10 years

Despite 10 years of post-marketing safety monitoring of the phosphate binder lanthanum carbonate, concerns about aluminium-like accumulation and toxicity persist. Here, we present a concise overview of the safety profile of lanthanum carbonate and interim results from a 5-year observational database study (SPD405-404; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00567723). The pharmacokinetic paradigms of lanthanum and aluminium are different in that lanthanum is minimally absorbed and eliminated via the hepatobiliary pathway, whereas aluminium shows appreciable absorption and is eliminated by the kidneys. Randomised prospective studies of paired bone biopsies revealed no evidence of accumulation or toxicity in patients treated with lanthanum carbonate. Patients treated with lanthanum carbonate for up to 6 years showed no clinically relevant changes in liver enzyme or bilirubin levels. Lanthanum does not cross the intact blood-brain barrier. The most common adverse effects are mild/moderate nausea, diarrhoea and flatulence. An interim Kaplan-Meier analysis of SPD405-404 data from the United States Renal Data System revealed that the median 5-year survival was 51.6 months (95% CI: 49.1, 54.2) in patients who received lanthanum carbonate (test group), 48.9 months (95% CI: 47.3, 50.5) in patients treated with other phosphate binders (concomitant therapy control group) and 40.3 months (95% CI: 38.9, 41.5) in patients before the availability of lanthanum carbonate (historical control group). Bone fracture rates were 5.9%, 6.7% and 6.4%, respectively. After more than 850 000 person-years of worldwide patient exposure, there is no evidence that lanthanum carbonate is associated with adverse safety outcomes in patients with end-stage renal disease.