A new phase II study of the oral DP₂ receptor antagonist, fevipiprant, has found a statistically significant improvement in pre-dose forced expiratory volumes (FEV1) versus placebo in allergic asthma patients.
The findings are published today (24 August, 2017) in the European Respiratory Journal.
Researchers carried out a randomised, multicentre study to investigate the effects of fevipiprant in patients with allergic asthma that is inadequately controlled by inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) therapy.
1,058 adult patients from 188 centres in 22 countries worldwide were randomised to receive fevipiprant (782 patients), montelukast (139) or placebo (137) for 12 weeks.
The most notable finding was the statistically significant improvement in FEV1 values; pre-dose FEV1 increased with fevipiprant in combination with low-dose ICS when compared with placebo after 12 weeks’ treatment.
The authors note that asthma symptom control was not significantly affected by any fevipiprant dose compared to montelukast or placebo, and neither fevipiprant nor montelukast was reported to have any effect on patient quality of life.
Discontinuations due to adverse events occurred in 81 patients overall, but the majority of discontinuations were non-serious and were evenly distributed across treatments.
The finding supports existing phase II studies of fevipiprant, where the drug has been shown to be effective in asthma patients with severe airflow limitations.
The researchers conclude that more research is required to assess the potential of fevipiprant for achieving asthma symptom control, improving quality of life and reducing the risk of exacerbations in patients with asthma.