Pramipexole extended release: in Parkinson's disease

Pramipexole extended release (ER) is a non-ergolinic dopamine receptor agonist available for use as a once-daily oral treatment for the signs and symptoms of early and advanced idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Once-daily pramipexole ER and three times-daily pramipexole immediate release (IR) have similar exposure over 24 hours. The ER formulation is associated with fewer fluctuations in plasma pramipexole concentrations over this period. Pramipexole ER improved the symptoms of Parkinson's disease in three well designed trials in adults with early or advanced disease, as measured by changes from baseline in the sum of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) parts II and III subtotal scores. In a 9-week study, the majority of patients with early Parkinson's disease who were receiving stable pramipexole IR treatment were successfully switched to pramipexole ER. Relative to placebo at week 18, pramipexole ER 0.375-4.5 mg (of the salt) once daily significantly decreased the sum of the UPDRS parts II and III subtotal scores from baseline in two trials in patients with early or advanced Parkinson's disease, and also reduced the percentage of off-time during waking hours in patients with advanced disease. The efficacy of pramipexole ER was maintained after 33 weeks of treatment in the trials in patients with early or advanced Parkinson's disease. Pramipexole ER was generally well tolerated in patients with Parkinson's disease, with the rate of adverse events being generally similar to that with pramipexole IR.