A New Once-Daily Epilepsy Pill
A New Once-Daily Epilepsy Pill
Fred Grossman, DO, Senior Vice President, Head of Clinical Development and Medical Affairs, Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., commented, "We have completed 2 monotherapy trials that have met their endpoints, which will be shared at the upcoming American Epilepsy Society meeting in December. Aptiom is not approved for monotherapy at this point, but we are considering a monotherapy approval."
Eslicarbazepine acetate is a new antiepileptic drug approved for once-daily adjunctive treatment of partial seizures. Eslicarbazepine acetate demonstrated efficacy and safety in 3 phase 3 randomized, placebo-controlled studies. When compared with carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine, eslicarbazepine lacks an epoxide metabolite, autoinduction, and exhibits a very low incidence of rash and hyponatremia. Once-daily dosing is a welcome advantage to help combat poor medication adherence. Monotherapy and pediatric indications may soon follow, pending additional studies.
Future Indications for Eslicarbazepine
Fred Grossman, DO, Senior Vice President, Head of Clinical Development and Medical Affairs, Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., commented, "We have completed 2 monotherapy trials that have met their endpoints, which will be shared at the upcoming American Epilepsy Society meeting in December. Aptiom is not approved for monotherapy at this point, but we are considering a monotherapy approval."
Conclusions
Eslicarbazepine acetate is a new antiepileptic drug approved for once-daily adjunctive treatment of partial seizures. Eslicarbazepine acetate demonstrated efficacy and safety in 3 phase 3 randomized, placebo-controlled studies. When compared with carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine, eslicarbazepine lacks an epoxide metabolite, autoinduction, and exhibits a very low incidence of rash and hyponatremia. Once-daily dosing is a welcome advantage to help combat poor medication adherence. Monotherapy and pediatric indications may soon follow, pending additional studies.
