[Impact of integrated upper limb spasticity management including repeat botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) injections on patient-centred goal attainment in real-life practice: results from the prospective, observational Upper Limb International Spasticity cohort study (ULIS-III) in a Russian subpopulation]

OBJECTIVE

To assess the longitudinal attainment of patient-centred and function related goals after integrated spasticity management including repeated cycles of botulinum toxin A type A (BoNT-A) injections in real life settings over a period of 2 years. The article presents analysis of the results within the subpopulation of patients from Russia.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

This international, multicentre, observational, prospective, longitudinal cohort study (registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02454803) included patients ≥18 years old with upper-limb spasticity of any aetiology in whom a decision had already been made to inject any BoNT-A formulation commercially available in the Russi. The treatment outcomes were evaluated using the Upper Limb Spasticity Index, which combines the patient-centred Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS) with a set of targeted standardised measures to assess the neurological impairment. The extent of functional impairment was assessed using the DAS.

RESULTS

168 Russian patients from 7 sites with a mean age of 49.8 years participated in the study. The Russian subpopulation had some differences from the overall study population in baseline characteristics of patients and injection practices of BoNT-A treatment. During the study period, the majority of Russian patients received AboBoNT-A (Dysport) injections - 142 (85%) patients at cycle 1, while OnaBoNT-A (Botox) was used in 14 (8%) patients, and IncoBoNT-A (Xeomin) - in 12 (7%) patients. Higher doses of AboBoNT-A were observed compared to the overall population, mean doses of AboBoNT-A between cycles 1 and 4 were 909-934 U in the Russian patients and 814-859 U in the overall population. In general, patients of the Russian subpopulation successfully achieved their treatment goals. The mean cumulated GAS T-score over the study was 51.1±3.0, marginally exceeding the same parameter in the overall population (49.5±5.9). Across the 6 goal domains, cumulated GAS T-scores in Russian subpopulation were highest for the goals related to passive function and pain relief, with mean scores of 51.8±4.2 and 51.6±4.8, respectively. In the overall population cumulated GAS T-scores were highest for involuntary movements (mean 50.5±5.6) and pain relief (mean 50.4±6.2). The lowest GAS T-scores were for the treatment goals related to active function in both Russian subpopulation and overall population, the mean scores were 48.3±5.5 and 46.6±7.4 respectively. The study results also showed significant improvement in in terms of reduction of muscle tone according to MAS (Modified Ashworth Scale) and the extent of functional impairment according to DAS (Disability Assessment Scale).

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this subgroup analysis on patients from Russia showed high effectiveness of repeated cycles of BoNT-A injections as part of the integrated upper limb spasticity management conducted in real life settings, both in terms of reduction of muscle tone and correction of functional impairment, which contributes to the successful achievement of the treatment goals. The right choice of individual patient-centred treatment goals and methods for assessing their achievement are important components of the treatment and rehabilitation process for patients with spastic paresis of the upper limb.

Economic evaluation of AbobotulinumtoxinA vs OnabotulinumtoxinA in real-life clinical management of cervical dystonia

Background

Botulinum neurotoxins type A (BoNT-As) are commonly used treatments for cervical dystonia (CD). Clinical trials have demonstrated the benefits of them in these patients, but data from real-life clinical practice as well as comparative data on the cost and outcome of different BoNT-A formulations are limited. The aim of this study was to compare abobotulinumtoxinA (aboBoNT-A) and onabotulinumtoxinA (onaBoNT-A) on their clinical outcomes and drug costs in real-life clinical practice.

Methods

This analysis included 356 adult patients with idiopathic CD treated with aboBoNT-A (n = 253) or onaBoNT-A (n = 103) from 38 centres across Europe and Australia (NCT00833196). The clinical outcome measures were treatment responses, changes in TWSTRS scores and changes in health utility scores from baseline to study visit 2 and 3. Health utility score was mapped from the TWSTRS total scale, using a previous publication. Costs included drug cost for France.

Results

The aboBoNT-A treated group had 2.06 (95% CI: 1.15 to 3.69) times higher odds of achieving treatment response than the onaBoNT-A treated group. The adjusted mean change in TWSTRS total score from baseline to visit 3 were - 6.42 (95% CI: - 7.52 to - 5.33) for aboBoNT-A and - 3.94 (95% CI: - 5.68 to - 2.2) for onaBoNT-A, with a difference of - 2.48 (95% CI: - 4.57 to - 0.39). The corresponding difference in the adjusted mean change for health utility score was 0.008 (95% CI: 0.001 to 0.014). Mean treatment costs for aboBoNT-A and onaBoNT-A were 314.1 (95% CI: 299.1 to 329.0) and 346.6 (95% CI: 322.9 to 370.4) Euros, respectively.

Conclusions

This comparative analysis indicated that treatment with aboBoNT-A may be less costly and lead to improved clinical outcomes when compared with onaBoNT-A, from a French healthcare system perspective. Additional comparative clinical data from larger patient cohorts, as well as more information about cost consequences of an improvement in clinical outcome would be of value to further confirm the findings.

[Treatment goals in patients with post-stroke upper limb spasticity following injection of botulinum toxin A : Results of the German-Austrian subgroup of the ULIS-II study]

BACKGROUND

The ULIS-II was an international cohort study (NCT01020500) evaluating current treatment of upper limb spasticity in post-stroke adult patients with botulinum toxin A (BoNT-A) in real-life practice.

OBJECTIVE

Post hoc analysis to compare current management of post-stroke adult patients regarding goal setting and attainment with BoNT-A in Germany (D) and Austria (A) with the full cohort of ULIS-II.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The ULIS-II was a global, open-label, prospective, multicenter observational study with 2 visits conducted in 84 centers worldwide. A total of 468 patients aged ≥18 years with post-stroke upper limb spasticity were included. The primary outcome measure was the responder rate defined as achievement of a goal attainment scale (GAS) score of 0, 1 or 2 after 1 cycle of BoNT-A.

RESULTS

A total of 57 patients from D/A were included in the efficacy analysis. The number of patients in D/A and the full cohort achieving the primary (78.9% vs. 79.6%) and secondary treatment goal (76.8% vs. 75.6%), respectively, was comparable. Deviating from the full cohort, the most common primary treatment goal in D/A was related to impairment (33.3%). Compared to baseline there was a marked reduction in concomitant therapies at the follow-up visit after 3-5 months in the D/A group: patients receiving oral anti-spastic medication 61.4% vs. 40.4%, positioning 50.9% vs. 36.8% and splinting 43.9% vs. 31.6%. Injection control techniques were less frequently used in the D/A group compared to the global study cohort (electrical stimulation: 26.3% vs. 45.8% and electromyography: 12.3% vs. 29.2%). No adverse events were documented in the D/A cohort.

CONCLUSION

A single injection of BoNT-A in adult patients with post-stroke spasticity of the arm led to a high response rate of approximately 80% in both cohorts. The BoNT-A injections in post-stroke adult patients contributed to an improvement in the daily life of patients and their carers beyond simple reduction of muscle tone or spasticity.

[Study of the beneficial effects of triptorelin on lower urinary tract symptoms in Algeria in patients with non-localized prostate cancer]

INTRODUCTION

This study aims to assess the effectiveness of triptorelin on lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in Algerian patients with non-localized prostate cancer in routine practice.

MATERIALS

This prospective, observational, non-interventional, multicentre study was conducted in Algeria. Included patients who had locally advanced or metastatic prostate cancer and were treated with triptorelin 11.25mg given every 12 weeks. LUTS were evaluated with the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) until week 48 after treatment initiation. An IPSS>7 indicated moderate to severe LUTS. The primary objective of the study was to determine the distribution of IPSS at week 48.

RESULTS

This study enrolled 193 patients at 21 centres. A total of 144 participants had IPSS available at baseline and after baseline (136 patients had moderate to severe LUTS and eight had mild LUTS at baseline). At week 48, amongst the 116 patients with IPSS available and moderate to severe LUTS at baseline, 94 (81.0%) had moderate to severe LUTS and 22 (19.0%) had mild LUTS. At week 48, the eight patients with mild symptoms at baseline remained in this category. The proportion of patient with severe LUTS decreased from 53.7% at baseline to 12.1% at week 48. Adverse events were reported in 22.9% of participants.

CONCLUSION

A reduction of LUTS is observed in patients with locally advanced or metastatic prostate cancer treated with triptorelin in routine practice. This is in agreement with similar observational studies of triptorelin conducted in other countries.

LEVEL OF PROOF

4.

Impact of locally advanced or metastatic prostate cancer on the quality of life

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to assess the health-related quality of life of patients with prostate cancer in advanced phases to obtain additional information on the patients' health. The growing interest in understanding the patient's perspective and the scarcity of prospective studies of this population motivated this research study.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We present an observational study performed on 131 urology consultations, with a sample of 601 patients with locally advanced or metastatic prostate cancer, assessed during 2 visits: baseline and at 12 months. We collected demographic, clinical, quality-of-life (PROSQoLI and EuroQoL-5D-5L questionnaires) and anxiety/depression (HADS questionnaire) endpoints.

RESULTS

The mean age (SD) was 73.8 (8.2) years, and 87.2% of the participants were retired or pensioners. Some 58.7% of the patients presented locally advanced prostate cancer. Urinary symptoms were the most common, decreasing significantly after one year (P<.05). Urinary problems and fatigue were the most affected measures, and pain/discomfort was the dimension present in most patients (65.3%). According to the linear regression model, asthenia and pain were 2 of the factors most closely related to a poorer quality of life. The presence of anxiety/depression was low. Finally, the health condition as assessed by the clinician was more positive than when assessed by the patients.

CONCLUSIONS

This study broadens the scarce information on the quality of life of the population with advanced prostate cancer, information of use for the clinical management of these patients.