The US FDA has approved the use of Arnuity Ellipta (fluticasone furoate), a once-daily inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) for the maintenance treatment of asthma in children from as young as 5 years, according to manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline.
The approval is for the use of Arnuity Ellipta as maintenance treatment of asthma as prophylactic therapy in children aged 5 to 11 years, delivered as a 50mcg once-daily dose using the Ellipta inhaler. Arnuity is not indicated for relief of acute bronchospasm. Arnuity Ellipta (100mcg and 200mcg) is an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) which was approved in the US in August 2014 for the maintenance treatment of asthma in patients aged 12 years and older.
The submission to support today’s approval included data from a pivotal study assessing the efficacy and safety of once daily fluticasone furoate, compared with placebo, in 593 children aged 5 to 11 years (inclusive) with asthma. Inhaled fluticasone propionate 100 mcg twice daily was included as an active control. The primary endpoint of the 12-week study was the mean change from baseline in daily morning peak expiratory flow (PEF), a measure of lung function.
Results showed statistically significant improvements in PEF with once daily fluticasone furoate 50mg over placebo (19.5 L/min; P<.001). The safety profile in this age group was consistent with the known profile of Arnuity (incidence of on-treatment adverse events (ITT population) was 29% in the placebo group and 32% in the fluticasone furoate 50mcg group). Most common adverse reactions reported in ?3% of pediatric subjects aged 5 to 11 years are pharyngitis, bronchitis, and viral infection.
“Despite the challenges of running clinical studies in this age group, we felt it was important to conduct a study to confirm the benefit of Arnuity in improving lung function in younger children with asthma – giving doctors confidence when choosing to prescribe this treatment for children as young as 5 years old,” said Dr Hal Barron, chief scientific officer and president of R&D, GSK.
