Arnold Gammaitoni, PharmD, Vice President of Medical and Scientific Affair at Zogenix, discusses results from a phase 3 clinical trial demonstrating improvements in executive functioning in patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome treated with fenfluramine. This data was presented at the AAN 2021 meeting.
Lennox-Gastaut syndrome is a rare neurological condition that usually begins in childhood. It is characterized by multiple types of seizures and intellectual disability. This condition can be caused by brain malformations, perinatal asphyxia, severe head injury, central nervous system infection, and inherited degenerative or metabolic conditions. In about one-third of cases, no cause can be found.
Fenfluramine was approved last year for the treatment of seizures associated with Dravet syndrome, another rare condition characterized by multiple types of seizures and cognitive impairment. Fenfluramine has been shown in previous clinical trials to prevent frequency of seizures in Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (i.e., NCT03355209). The primary goal of the current study was to use the BRIEF-2 indexes (a validated rating scale for measuring executive function) and global executive composite to determine whether fenfluramine treatment improves everyday executive function in children and young adults with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. The results of this study demonstrated that children and young adults treated with fenfluramine were more likely than those in the placebo arm to show clinically meaningful improvement in executive functioning.
To learn more about Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and other rare neurological disorders, visit checkrare.com/diseases/neurology