Efficacy and safety of fesoterodine treatment for overactive bladder symptoms in elderly women with and without hypertension.

OBJECTIVE: To assess fesoterodine treatment in elderly women with overactive bladder with and without hypertension. METHODS: Data for 2527 elderly women with overactive bladder symptoms, including urgency urinary incontinence, were pooled from 10 double-blind, placebo-controlled fesoterodine studies. RESULTS: A total of 1523 elderly women (60.3%) had a history of hypertension, and 1004 women (39.7%) had no hypertension history. Overactive bladder symptoms, mean bodyweight and mean body mass index at baseline were significantly higher in women with overactive bladder and hypertension versus those without hypertension (P < 0.05). Statistically significant improvements in overactive bladder symptoms at week 12 were observed for fesoterodine treatment versus placebo in women with hypertension and those without (P < 0.05). The diary-dry rate (no urgency urinary incontinence episodes), the proportion with less than eight micturitions/24 h, overactive bladder symptom bother and health-related quality of life were also statistically significantly improved by fesoterodine treatment in both populations. Incidence of treatment-related adverse events with fesoterodine was similar in women with hypertension (39.3%) and without hypertension (44.6%). Dry mouth and constipation were the most common treatment-related adverse events with fesoterodine in women with hypertension (26.2% and 5.2%, respectively) and without hypertension (30.5% and 8.0%). CONCLUSIONS: A relationship among the severity of overactive bladder symptoms, hypertension and obesity in elderly women is suggested. Fesoterodine provides significantly greater improvements in overactive bladder symptoms and health-related quality of life versus placebo in women with or without hypertension. Hypertension does not appear to affect the efficacy and safety of fesoterodine in elderly women with overactive bladder symptoms, including urgency urinary incontinence.

Safety and Antihypertensive Effect of Selara® (Eplerenone): Results from a Postmarketing Surveillance in Japan.

Prospective postmarketing surveillance of Selara (eplerenone), a selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist, was performed to confirm its safety and efficacy for hypertension treatment in Japan. The change in blood pressure after initiation of eplerenone treatment was also examined. Patients with essential hypertension who were eplerenone-naïve were recruited regardless of the use of other antihypertensive drugs. For examination of changes in blood pressure, patients were excluded if eplerenone was contraindicated or used off-label. Patients received 50-100 mg of eplerenone once daily and were observed for 12 weeks. No treatments including antihypertensive drugs were restricted during the surveillance period. Across Japan, 3,166 patients were included for safety analysis. The incidence of adverse drug reactions was 2.4%. The major adverse drug reactions observed were hyperkalemia (0.6%), dizziness, renal impairment, and increased serum potassium (0.2% each). The mean systolic blood pressure decreased from 152.1 ± 19.0 mmHg to 134.8 ± 15.2 mmHg at week 12, and the mean diastolic blood pressure decreased from 85.8 ± 13.7 mmHg to 77.7 ± 11.4 mmHg. There were no significant new findings regarding the type or incidence of adverse reactions, and eplerenone had a clinically significant antihypertensive effect, leading to favorable blood pressure control.

Efficacy of fesoterodine on nocturia and quality of sleep in Asian patients with overactive bladder.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy of fesoterodine vs placebo on nocturia, sleep disturbance, and sleep-related quality of life (QoL) in patients with overactive bladder and nocturia. METHODS: This posthoc analysis used data from a 12-week, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of fesoterodine 4 and 8 mg per day in Asian adults reporting ≥8 micturitions and ≥1 urgency urinary incontinence episodes per 24 hours at baseline. Patients who reported ≥1 nocturnal micturition/24 h were included in this analysis. Efficacy variables included change from baseline to week 12/end of treatment in nocturnal micturitions/24 h, nocturnal voided volume/micturition, and hours of undisturbed sleep. Sleep-related QoL was assessed using King's Health Questionnaire Sleep/Energy domain. Treatment comparisons were made using analysis of covariance. RESULTS: Among 555 patients, reductions in nocturnal micturitions with fesoterodine 4 mg (-0.63) and 8 mg (-0.77) were numerically greater vs placebo (-0.56), but differences were not significant (P >.05). When patients with a nocturnal polyuria index >33% were excluded, the decrease in nocturnal micturitions was significantly greater with fesoterodine 8 mg vs placebo (-0.24; P = .031). Increases in nocturnal voided volume/micturition were significantly greater with fesoterodine 4 (38.07 mL; P = .013) and 8 mg (42.05 mL; P <.001) vs placebo (14.89 mL). Hours of undisturbed sleep was significantly longer with fesoterodine 4 mg vs placebo (80 vs 54 minutes; P = .032); improvement in King's Health Questionnaire Sleep/Energy scores was significantly greater with fesoterodine 4 (P = .034) and 8 mg (P = .019) vs placebo. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that fesoterodine may reduce nocturnal micturitions and improve sleep quality and QoL in overactive bladder patients with nocturia.

A Comparison of the Pharmacokinetics and Drug Safety Among East Asian Populations.

Global clinical studies conducted in various countries and regions are increasing. Race and extrinsic ethnic factors are key covariates that may affect the pharmacokinetics (PK), efficacy, and safety of the drug. Genetic similarity among East Asian populations has been confirmed; thus, PK, efficacy, and safety in these populations are expected to be similar, but this has not been confirmed. This study presents a comparison of PK and safety among East Asians from clinical studies sponsored by Pfizer. Four compounds with different characteristics, including mechanism of actions and PK profiles, were selected, and retrospective PK and safety comparisons in East Asians were conducted. No distinct differences were observed in PK and safety across the 4 compounds. These results are consistent with previous reports on PK comparisons and meet the expectations based on genetic similarity among East Asians. Extrapolation of these findings to other compounds should be done with caution, but these results should support the consideration of mutual use of clinical data among East Asian countries.