Suvorexant in Patients With Insomnia: Results From Two 3-Month Randomized Controlled Clinical Trials
Recommended Citation
Herring WJ, Connor KM, Ivgy-May N, Snyder E, Liu K, Snavely DB, Krystal AD, Walsh JK, Benca RM, Rosenberg R, Sangal RB, Budd K, Hutzelmann J, Leibensperger H, Froman S, Lines C, Roth T, and Michelson D. Suvorexant in patients with insomnia: Results from two 3-month randomized controlled clinical trials. Biol Psychiatry 2016; 79(2):136-148.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-15-2016
Publication Title
Biological psychiatry
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Suvorexant is an orexin receptor antagonist for treatment of insomnia. We report results from two pivotal phase 3 trials.
METHODS: Two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, 3-month trials in nonelderly (18-64 years) and elderly (≥65 years) patients with insomnia. Suvorexant doses of 40/30 mg (nonelderly/elderly) and 20/15 mg (nonelderly/elderly) were evaluated. The primary focus was 40/30 mg, with fewer patients randomized to 20/15 mg. There was an optional 3-month double-blind extension in trial 1. Each trial included a 1-week, randomized, double-blind run-out after double-blind treatment to assess withdrawal/rebound. Efficacy was assessed at week 1, month 1, and month 3 by patient-reported subjective total sleep time and time to sleep onset and in a subset of patients at night 1, month 1, and month 3 by polysomnography end points of wakefulness after persistent sleep onset and latency to onset of persistent sleep (LPS). One thousand twenty-one patients were randomized in trial 1 and 1019 patients in trial 2.
RESULTS: Suvorexant 40/30 mg was superior to placebo on all subjective and polysomnography end points at night 1/week 1, month 1, and month 3 in both trials, except for LPS at month 3 in trial 2. Suvorexant 20/15 mg was superior to placebo on subjective total sleep time and wakefulness after persistent sleep onset at night 1/week 1, month 1, and month 3 in both trials and at most individual time points for subjective time to sleep onset and LPS in each trial. Both doses of suvorexant were generally well tolerated, with
CONCLUSIONS: Suvorexant improved sleep onset and maintenance over 3 months of nightly treatment and was generally safe and well tolerated.
Medical Subject Headings
Aged; Azepines; Double-Blind Method; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Orexin Receptor Antagonists; Polysomnography; Sleep; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders; Treatment Outcome; Triazoles; Wakefulness
PubMed ID
25526970
Volume
79
Issue
2
First Page
136
Last Page
148
