In March 2019, it was approved in the United States to treat adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis, to include clinically isolated syndrome, relapsing-remitting disease, and active secondary progressive disease.[1]
Medical uses
Siponimod is indicated for the treatment of secondary progressive multiple sclerosis, which is the progressive neurological decline of multiple sclerosis that happens independent of acute relapses.[1] In active secondary progressive multiple sclerosis, siponimod decreases the risk of disability and multiple sclerosis relapses.[1]
Adverse effects
In clinical trials of siponimod, the most common adverse effects were headache, high blood pressure, and liver function test abnormalities.[1]
Siponimod may be very similar to fingolimod but preventing lymphopenia, one of its main side effects, by preventing egress of lymphocytes from lymph nodes. Siponimod may be more selective in the particular sphingosine-1-phosphate receptors (five in number) that it modulates.[12] It is selective for the -1 and -5 SIP receptors.[10]
History
In March 2019, siponimod was approved in the United States to treat adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis, to include clinically isolated syndrome, relapsing-remitting disease, and active secondary progressive disease.[1][13][14]
The efficacy of siponimod was shown in a clinical trial[15] of 1,651 patients that compared siponimod to placebo in people with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis who had evidence of disability progression in the prior two years and no relapses in the three months prior to enrollment.[1][13] The primary endpoint of the study was the time to three-month confirmed progression in disability.[1] The trial was conducted at 294 centers in Asia, Australia, Canada, Europe, South America, and the United States.[13]
Siponimod was approved for medical use in Australia in October 2019.[2]
In January 2020, siponimod was approved in the European Union for the treatment of adults with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis with active disease evidenced by relapses or imaging features of inflammatory activity.[16][9]
^ abKappos L, Bar-Or A, Cree B, Fox R, Giovannoni G, Gold R, et al. (2014). "Siponimod (BAF312) for the treatment of secondary progressive multiple sclerosis: Design of the phase 3 EXPAND trial". Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders. 3 (6): 752. doi:10.1016/j.msard.2014.09.185. ISSN2211-0348.
^WO 2008000419, Hiestand, Peter C & Schnell, Christian, "S1P Receptor modulators for treating multiple sclerosis", published 2008-01-03, assigned to Novartis
^Clinical trial number NCT01665144 for "Exploring the Efficacy and Safety of Siponimod in Patients With Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis (EXPAND)" at ClinicalTrials.gov