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FDA approves Rayaldee to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism in chronic kidney disease patients
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved OPKO Health Inc.’s Rayaldee (calcifediol) extended release capsules to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) in adults with stage 3 or 4 chronic kidney disease and serum total 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels less than 30 ng/mL. Rayaldee is a patented extended release product containing 30 mcg of calcifediol (25-hydroxyvitamin D3).
Results from two 26 week placebo controlled, double blind phase 3 trials demonstrated that a larger proportion of stage 3 or 4 CKD patients with SHPT and vitamin D insufficiency achieved ≥30% reductions in plasma intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) when treated with Rayaldee than with placebo. Vitamin D insufficiency was corrected in more than 80% of the patients receiving Rayaldee compared with less than 7% of subjects receiving placebo. Mean serum calcium and phosphorus levels increased by 0.1 mg/dL during RAYALDEE treatment compared to placebo treatment, but these changes were deemed clinically irrelevant. No differences in Rayaldee 's efficacy or safety were observed between patients with stage 3 CKD or stage 4 CKD.
"Rayaldee fills a large void in the current treatment options for SHPT in predialysis patients," said Dr. Charles W. Bishop, CEO of OPKO's Renal Division. "The current standard of care is high dose vitamin D supplementation, an approach for treating SHPT that is neither FDA approved nor demonstrated to be safe and effective in this population. SHPT is a progressive disease that becomes increasingly debilitating and difficult to treat, necessitating timely and effective treatment."