Lorazepam for the Treatment of Status Epilepticus in Children

May 20, 2016 updated by: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Use of Lorazepam for the Treatment of Status Epilepticus

The purpose of this study is to gather the data to: 1) determine the best dose, and 2) evaluate its effectiveness and safety in stopping seizures. Part 1 is a pharmacokinetic study (study of how much drug is found in the body after it is given through a vein and how fast the body gets rid of the drug).

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Lorazepam is in a class of drugs called benzodiazepines that is used to treat seizures. Lorazepam has been widely used to treat children who have repeated or long seizures, a condition known as status epilepticus (SE). However, lorazepam is not currently approved by the FDA for use in children under 18 years of age. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to gather the data needed for FDA approval. Specifically, we will 1) determine the best dose, and 2) evaluate its effectiveness and safety in stopping seizures. Part 1 is a pharmacokinetic study. These are studies designed to identify and describe one or more of the following basic pharmacological concepts in humans: absorption (i.e. how much gets into the body); distribution (i.e. where it goes in the body); and metabolism and elimination (i.e. how the body gets rid of the medication and how long it takes). The study procedures involve taking blood samples from children, taking their vital signs, and conducting physical examinations. Informed consent will be obtained from all participants as required by federal guidelines. Patients will be divided into two groups. The first group will be patients who present to one of the 10 participating Emergency Rooms (ERs) in status epilepticus (repeated or continuous seizures). We will either ask for consent in the ER, or if we know they have a seizure disorder and have frequent visits to the ER, consent them beforehand for future visits to the ER. The second group will include patients who have a known seizure disorder and agree to be electively admitted to the hospital for a dose of lorazepam when they are not having seizures. We will draw blood samples from patients for up to 48 hours and then follow up via telephone for 30 days from the day the medication was given to assess for side effects.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

69

Phase

  • Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • District of Columbia
      • Washington, District of Columbia, United States, 20010
        • Children's National Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

3 months to 17 years (Child)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Generalized tonic clonic seizures within 1 hour OR 2 or more generalized tonic clonic seizures in rapid succession with no recovery of consciousness between seizures OR a single ongoing generalized tonic clonic seizure which has lasted at least 5 minutes

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Inability to obtain informed consent or assent
  • Sustained hypotension
  • Significant arrhythmia
  • Known hypersensitivity to or contraindication to use of benzodiazepines
  • Use of lorazepam within 4 days of study drug dosing
  • American Association of Anesthesiology (ASA) Class > 1

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Description of the pharmacokinetics of two different doses (0.05 and 0.1 mg/kg) IV lorazepam

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
safety of IV lorazepam

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Collaborators

The Emmes Company, LLC

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: James Chamberlain, MD, Children's National Medical Center, Washington, D.C.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

March 1, 2005

Primary Completion (Actual)

April 1, 2007

Study Completion (Actual)

February 1, 2009

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 15, 2005

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 15, 2005

First Posted (Estimate)

June 16, 2005

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

May 23, 2016

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 20, 2016

Last Verified

May 1, 2009

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • HHSN275200403393C

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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