Corticosteroids for Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome (IRIS) (IRIS)

High-Dose Corticosteroids for Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome in Patients Who Develop Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy on Natalizumab

The objectives of this study are to explore the effects of administering high-dose corticosteroids to participants who developed progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) while on natalizumab as measured by time-course change in functional status based on Karnofsky Performance Status Index through 6 months following the completion of plasma exchange (PLEX; or equivalent), survival at 6 months following the completion of PLEX (or equivalent), and incidence and severity of adverse events (AEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs); to characterize the evolution of immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) as measured by time course changes in Global Clinical Impression of Improvement (GCI-I), Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), magnetoencephalography (MEG), chemokines, cytokines, C-reactive protein (CRP), John Cunningham virus (JCV) load and cell count in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF); and to characterize the time course elimination of serum natalizumab concentrations in the study population following the last PLEX (or equivalent) procedure.

Study Overview

• Status: Terminated
• Conditions: Leukoencephalopathy, Progressive Multifocal; Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Methylprednisolone; Drug: Prednisolone

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 3
• Phase: Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Germany
  • Bochum, Germany
    • Research Site
  • Wurzburg, Germany
    • Research Site
• United States
  • Nebraska
    • Hastings, Nebraska, United States
      • Research Site

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (ADULT, OLDER_ADULT)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Key Inclusion Criteria:

• Must have been receiving natalizumab for multiple sclerosis (MS) prior to the diagnosis or suspicion of Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).
• Subject must be willing to undergo or have completed plasma exchange (PLEX) prior to initiating study treatment.

Key Exclusion Criteria:

• History of severe allergic or anaphylactic reactions or known hypersensitivity to any drug including hypersensitivity to corticosteroids.

NOTE: Other protocol defined inclusion/exclusion criteria may apply.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: TREATMENT
• Allocation: NON_RANDOMIZED
• Interventional Model: PARALLEL
• Masking: NONE

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: Pulsed IVMP; Intravenous methylprednisolone (IVMP) 1 g/day administered the first 3 days of each weekly cycle, and repeated for 3 additional cycles (totaling 4 cycles). If necessary, 2 additional weekly cycles of 1 g IVMP daily for 3 days can be administered at the discretion of the investigator.	Drug: Methylprednisolone; In intravenous form (for a daily dose of 1 g/day on treatment days).; Other Names: Medrol; Solu-Medrol
EXPERIMENTAL: IVMP with oral prednisolone taper; Intravenous methylprednisolone (IVMP) 1g/day for 6 days followed by an oral taper of prednisolone over 2 months (suggested dosages starting at 80 mg and tapering to 5 mg). If necessary, additional cycles of 1 g IVMP daily for 3 to 5 days can be administered at any time.	Drug: Methylprednisolone; In intravenous form (for a daily dose of 1 g/day on treatment days).; Other Names: Medrol; Solu-Medrol; Drug: Prednisolone; Oral prednisolone used as a taper, with suggested dosages starting at 80 mg and tapering to 5 mg.; Other Names: Prelone; Orapred

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Time Course Change in Functional Status Based on Karnofsky Performance Status Index Through 6 Months Following Completion of Plasma Exchange (PLEX)	The Karnofsky Performance Status Index (KPSI) is an assessment tool intended to assist clinicians and caretakers in gauging a patient's functional status and ability to carry out activities of daily living. A KPSI of 100=normal, no complaints, no evidence of disease; 90=able to carry on normal activity, minor signs or symptoms of disease; 80=normal activity with effort, some signs or symptoms of disease; 70=cares for self, unable to carry on normal activity or do active work; 60=requires occasional assistance but is able to care for most personal needs; 50=requires considerable assistance and frequent medical care; 40=disabled, requires special care and assistance; 30=severely disabled, hospitalization is indicated, although death is not imminent; 20=very sick, hospitalization is necessary, active support treatment is necessary; 10=moribund, fatal processes progressing rapidly; 0=dead.	Baseline up to 6 months
Number of Participants Who Survived at 6 Months Following Completion of Plasma Exchange (PLEX)	Following the completion of rapid removal of natalizumab using PLEX or equivalent.	6 months
Number of Participants With Adverse Events (AEs) and Serious Adverse Events (SAEs)	AE=any untoward medical occurrence in a participant administered a pharmaceutical product and that does not necessarily have a causal relationship with this treatment. SAE=any untoward medical occurrence that at any dose: results in death; in the view of the Investigator, places the participant at immediate risk of death (a life-threatening event); however, this does not include an event that, had it occurred in a more severe form, might have caused death; requires hospitalization or prolongation of existing hospitalization; results in persistent or significant disability/incapacity; or results in a congenital anomaly/birth defect. An SAE may also be any other medically important event that, in the opinion of the Investigator, may jeopardize the participant or may require intervention to prevent one of the other outcomes listed in the definition above.	from the first dose of study treatment through the end of the treatment period (6 months) + a 4-week post-treatment period
Severity of AEs and SAEs	AEs and SAEs were categorized as mild, moderate or severe according to the following criteria: Mild=barely noticeable to participant or does not make participant uncomfortable; does not influence performance or functioning; prescription drug not ordinarily needed for relief of symptom(s) but may be given because of personality of participant. Moderate=of a sufficient severity to make participant uncomfortable; performance of daily activity is influenced; participant is able to continue in study; treatment for symptom(s) may be needed. Severe=symptoms cause severe discomfort; symptoms cause incapacity or significant impact on participant's daily life; severity may cause cessation of treatment with study treatment; treatment for symptom(s) may be given and/or participant hospitalized. Please see Outcome Measure 3 for AE and SAE definitions.	from the first dose of study treatment through the end of the treatment period (6 months) + a 4-week post-treatment period
Time Course Change in the Global Clinical Impression of Improvement (GCI-I) Scale	The GCI-I scale is a 7-point scale that assesses how much the participant's illness has improved or worsened relative to a baseline state at the beginning of the intervention, and rates it as: 1=very much improved; 2=much improved; 3=minimally improved; 4=no change; 5=minimally worse; 6=much worse; 7=very much worse.	Screening to 6 months following completion of PLEX (participants began treatment with intravenous methylprednisolone (IVMP) within 2 weeks after PLEX [or equivalent]).
Time Course Change in Cerebral Dysfunction Using the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT)	The SDMT measures the time to pair abstract symbols with specific numbers. The test requires elements of attention, visuoperceptual processing, working memory, and psychomotor speed. The score is the number of correctly coded items from 0-110 in 90 seconds. The total score provides a measure of the speed and accuracy of symbol-digit substitution.	Screening to 6 months following completion of PLEX (participants began treatment with IVMP within 2 weeks after PLEX [or equivalent]).
Time Course Changes in Brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)	The brain MRI data collected included: progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) lesion localization, T2 hyperintense lesion volume, and signs of cerebral edema.	Screening to 6 months following completion of PLEX (participants began treatment with IVMP within 2 weeks after PLEX [or equivalent]).
Time Course Change in Magnetoencephalography (MEG) Results	MEG was used to map brain activity.	Screening to 6 months following completion of PLEX (participants began treatment with IVMP within 2 weeks after PLEX [or equivalent]).
Time Course Change in Clinical Laboratory Values	Clinical laboratory values included chemokines, cytokines, C-reactive protein (CRP), John Cunningham (JC) virus load, and cell count in cerebrospinal fluid.	Screening to 6 months following completion of PLEX (participants began treatment with IVMP within 2 weeks after PLEX [or equivalent]).
Time Course Elimination of Serum Natalizumab Concentration Following Plasma Exchange (PLEX) or Equivalent		Baseline up to 6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Biogen
• Collaborators: Elan Pharmaceuticals

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: September 1, 2010
• Primary Completion (ACTUAL): February 1, 2012
• Study Completion (ACTUAL): February 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 29, 2010
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 28, 2010
• First Posted (ESTIMATE): September 29, 2010

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (ESTIMATE): September 5, 2014
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 26, 2014
• Last Verified: August 1, 2014

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: corticosteroids; IRIS; PML; Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy; Immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome; IVMP
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathologic Processes; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Virus Diseases; Infections; Immune System Diseases; Demyelinating Diseases; Disease; Encephalitis, Viral; Central Nervous System Viral Diseases; Central Nervous System Infections; Infectious Encephalitis; DNA Virus Infections; Slow Virus Diseases; Encephalitis; Polyomavirus Infections; Syndrome; Leukoencephalopathy, Progressive Multifocal; Leukoencephalopathies; Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Autonomic Agents; Peripheral Nervous System Agents; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Antineoplastic Agents; Antiemetics; Gastrointestinal Agents; Glucocorticoids; Hormones; Hormones, Hormone Substitutes, and Hormone Antagonists; Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal; Neuroprotective Agents; Protective Agents; Prednisolone; Methylprednisolone Acetate; Methylprednisolone; Methylprednisolone Hemisuccinate; Prednisolone acetate; Prednisolone hemisuccinate; Prednisolone phosphate
• Other Study ID Numbers: 101JC404; 2010-020369-26 (EUDRACT_NUMBER)