Savella in Treatment for Provoked Vestibulodynia

An Open Label Trial of Milnacipran in the Treatment of Women With Provoked Vestibulodynia

The primary aim of this study is to determine the efficacy of milnacipran in reducing pain in women with provoked vestibulodynia (PVD), a centrally mediated pain syndrome similar to fibromyalgia, that is characterized by severe pain in the vestibule (outer vagina). The investigators will also determine whether associated symptoms in PVD, including psychological distress, impairment of sexual function, physical function, and quality of life, are correlated with a reduction in vulvar pain.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Vulvodynia; Vestibulodynia
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Milnacipran

Detailed Description

This is an 18-week, open-label, flexible-dose "proof of concept" trial where women with a diagnosis of vestibulodynia will be evaluated at baseline for eligibility. Eligible patients will be openly treated with 200 mg/d milnacipran (or the maximum tolerated dose) for a total of 12 weeks. The study design involves 4 phases: screening and washout, baseline assessment, dose escalation, and stable-dose phase (Figure 1). After completing a 2-week washout of prohibited medications, patients will enter a 2-week baseline period, where they will be trained in the use of daily diaries and the tampon test, and baseline safety and efficacy data will be recorded. Patients who continue to meet the eligibility criteria at the end of the baseline period will begin a 6-week period of dose escalation. All patients will be scheduled to receive a total of 12 weeks of stable dose treatment after the 6-week dose-escalation period for a total of 18 weeks of drug exposure.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 31
• Phase: Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Tennessee
    • Germantown, Tennessee, United States, 38138
      • Women's Health Specialists, PLLC

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 14 years to 50 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. women between 18-54 years of age,
2. 'Friedrich's Criteria' must be met (report greater than six continuous months of vulvar symptoms including insertional dyspareunia or pain to touch, demonstrate on physical exam moderate to severe tenderness to light touch, localized to the vulvar vestibule [positive Cotton Swab Test] and demonstration of variable degrees of erythema of the vestibule),
3. an average pain level of "4" or greater on the 10-point tampon test and/or an average pain level of "4" or greater on the sexual intercourse pain scale(0 = no pain at all; 10 = worse pain ever) during the 2-week screening period(see Study Parameters Section), and
4. willing to use two forms of contraception during the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. other vulvar conditions, including dermatoses, vulvitis, vulvar papillomatosis, and atrophic vaginitis (presence of a maturation index),
2. previous vestibulectomy,
3. active vaginal infection,
4. neuropathology, including seizure disorder or syncopal episodes,
5. pregnancy or at risk for pregnancy and not using a reliable birth control method for at least 3 months prior to entering the study,
6. breastfeeding,
7. major medical illness including chronic liver disease/hepatic impairment, renal impairment, narrow-angle glaucoma, or uncontrolled hypertension,
8. major psychiatric illness including substance abuse,
9. multiple allergies (greater than three drugs or environmental agents),
10. use of centrally-acting agents, including monoamine oxidase inhibitors, benzodiazepines, opiates, muscle relaxants, and antidepressants within 2 weeks of randomization and during the study, and
11. use of topical lidocaine, within 2 weeks of randomization and during the study, as it has shown to be an effective treatment in some women, while worsening symptoms in others. Subjects will be permitted to take acetaminophen, aspirin, or a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug as rescue medication. They will be provided with a list of allowable escape medications and those which would constitute a protocol deviation.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: Milnacipran; This was an 18-week, open-label, flexible-dose exploratory trial where eligible patients were treated with 200 mg/day of milnacipran (or the maximum tolerated dose) for a total of 12 weeks. The study design involved 3 phases: screening and baseline assessment, dose escalation and stable-dose phase. All women received 12 weeks of stable dose treatment after a 6-week dose-escalation period for a total of 18 weeks of drug exposure.

Drug: Milnacipran; 6-week titration period starting at 12.5mg daily and moving up to 200mg daily (or maximum tolerated dose) for 12 weeks - total treatment period is 18 weeks; Other Names: Savella

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Pain Rating Index	The Pain Rating Index is a component of the McGill Pain Questionnaire which measures sensory and affective components of pain. "0" equals no pain to "45" equals severe pain. This measure was used to measure mean values at baseline and at 18 weeks post-treatment.	18 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Tampon Pain	"0" equals no pain with tampon insertion to "10" equals worse pain imaginable with tampon insertion. This measure was used to measure mean values at baseline and at 18 weeks post-treatment.	18 weeks
Coital Pain	"0" equals no pain with intercourse to "10" equals worse imaginable pain with intercourse. This measure was used to measure mean values at baseline and at 18 weeks post-treatment.	18 weeks
24-hour Vulvar Pain	"0" equals no vulvar pain within the last 24 hours to "10" equals worse imaginable vulvar pain within the last 24 hours. This measure was used to measure mean values at baseline and at 18 weeks post-treatment.	18 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Tennessee
• Collaborators: Forest Laboratories
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Candace S Brown, PharmD, University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: October 1, 2010
• Primary Completion (Actual): September 1, 2012
• Study Completion (Actual): September 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 24, 2011
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 24, 2011
• First Posted (Estimate): February 25, 2011

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 11, 2018
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 9, 2018
• Last Verified: May 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: PVD; provoked vestibulodynia; vulvodynia
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Vulvar Diseases; Vulvitis; Vulvodynia; Vulvar Vestibulitis; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Neurotransmitter Agents; Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action; Peripheral Nervous System Agents; Analgesics; Sensory System Agents; Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; Psychotropic Drugs; Neurotransmitter Uptake Inhibitors; Membrane Transport Modulators; Antidepressive Agents; Serotonin and Noradrenaline Reuptake Inhibitors; Milnacipran; Levomilnacipran
• Other Study ID Numbers: CSBrown SAV-MD-18