Efficacy and safety of ecallantide in treatment of recurrent attacks of hereditary angioedema: Open-label continuation study

Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare disorder characterized by recurrent attacks of potentially life-threatening edema. The plasma kallikrein inhibitor ecallantide is approved for treatment of acute HAE attacks. This study evaluates the efficacy and safety of ecallantide for treatment of multiple HAE episodes in the DX-88/19 (continuation) study. Patients received 30 mg of subcutaneous ecallantide for acute HAE attack symptoms, with no limit on number of episodes treated. Primary end point was change in patient-reported mean symptom complex severity (MSCS) score at 4 hours. Additional end points included change in MSCS score at 24 hours, treatment outcome score (TOS) at 4 and 24 hours, and time to response. Safety parameters included adverse events. Statistical analyses were conducted on qualifying treatment episodes (those with ≥12 patients). One hundred forty-seven patients received treatment for 625 episodes; analyses were conducted through 13 treatment episodes. Across 13 episodes at 4 hours, mean change in MSCS score ranged from −1.04 to −1.36, and mean TOSs ranged from 56.2 to 79.8. Median time to onset of sustained improvement ranged from 59 to 113 minutes. There was no indication of reduced efficacy with repeated ecallantide use. No new safety signals were detected. Eight patients (5.4%) reported potential hypersensitivity reactions, six of whom met the definition of anaphylaxis based on National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases criteria. Ecallantide is effective for acute recurrent HAE attacks and maintains its efficacy and safety during multiple treatment episodes in patients with HAE. Potential hypersensitivity reactions were consistent with prior reports.