Effects of mometasone furoate/formoterol fumarate fixed-dose combination formulation on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): results from a 52-week Phase III trial in subjects with moderate-to-very severe COPD

Abstract

Dennis E Doherty1, Donald P Tashkin2, Edward Kerwin3, Barbara A Knorr4, Tulin Shekar4, Sibabrata Banerjee4, Heribert Staudinger41Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, 2David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, 3Clinical Research Institute of Southern Oregon, Medford, OR, 4Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp, Whitehouse Station, NJ, USARationale: The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of a fixed-dose combination of mometasone furoate/formoterol fumarate (MF/F) administered via a metered-dose inhaler in subjects with moderate-to-very severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).Methods: This multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial had a 26-week treatment period and a 26-week safety extension. Subjects (n = 1196), at least 40 years old, were current or ex-smokers randomized to twice-daily inhaled MF/F 400/10 µg, MF/F 200/10 µg, MF 400 µg, F 10 µg, or placebo. The trial’s co-primary endpoints were mean changes from baseline, as area under the curve (AUC), in forced expiratory volume (FEV1) over 0–12 hours (AUC0-12 h FEV1) with MF/F versus MF, and in morning (AM) pre-dose (trough) FEV1 with MF/F versus F after 13 weeks of treatment. Key secondary endpoints were the effects of MF/F on respiratory health status using the Saint George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ), symptom-free nights, partly stable COPD at 26 weeks, and time to first COPD exacerbation.Results: The largest improvements in AUC0-12 h FEV1 were observed with MF/F 400/10 µg and MF/F 200/10 µg. Serial spirometry results demonstrated that bronchodilator effects with MF/F occurred rapidly (within 5 minutes), persisted for 12 hours after dosing, and were sustained over the 26-week treatment period. Similar findings were observed for AM pre-dose FEV1, for which effects were further investigated, excluding subjects whose AM FEV1 data were incorrectly collected after 2 days from the last dose of study treatment. Improvements in SGRQ scores surpassed the minimum clinically important difference of more than four units with both MF/F treatments. At 26 weeks, no notable between-treatment differences in the occurrence and nature of adverse events (AEs) were reported. No unexpected AEs were observed. Overall, 90 subjects reported AEs considered to be treatment-related, the most common of which were lenticular opacities, dysphonia, and oral candidiasis.Discussion: In conclusion, MF/F treatments improved lung function and respiratory health status, reduced exacerbations, and were well tolerated in subjects with moderate-to-very severe COPD.Keywords: COPD, FEV1, spirometry, exacerbation, inhaled corticosteroid, bronchodilator