Single infusion of zoledronic acid for patients with Paget's disease produces sustained response
Use of single infusions of zoledronic acid could improve disease
control |
Patients suffering from Paget's disease may benefit from a single infusion of zoledronic acid, say researchers.
Current bisphosphonate treatment consists of daily oral dosing for two
to six months, and patients are required to fast before and after treatment
because of the low bioavailability of the drugs. Intravenous pamidronate
is also used but is usually given as a series of slow intravenous infusions
requiring multiple visits.
However, researchers have found that a single infusion of zoledronic
acid can produce a rapid and sustained response and can possibly offer
more complete disease control than current therapies.
They randomised 357 patients with Paget’s disease to receive either
one 15-minute infusion of 5mg zoledronic acid or 60 days of oral risedronate
30mg daily.
After six months, the results showed that 96 per cent of patients in
the zoledronic acid group had a therapeutic response, compared with 74.3
per cent of patients receiving risedronate (P<0.001). Alkaline
phosphatase levels normalised in 88.6 per cent of patients in the zoledronic
acid
group and 57.9 per cent of patients receiving risedronate (P<0.001).
Furthermore, the researchers say that patients given the zoledronic acid
infusion experienced a shorter time to therapeutic response, higher quality
of life scores and more sustained responses than patients taking risedronate
(New England Journal of Medicine 2005:353:898). |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal
Acrobat
Reader