A Pharmacokinetic Evaluation of Levonorgestrel Implant and Antiretroviral Therapy

A Pharmacokinetic Evaluation of Levonorgestrel Implant and Non-nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitor (NNRTI)-Based Antiretroviral Therapy in HIV-infected Ugandan Women

The use of hormone contraception poses a significant challenge for the estimated 16 million HIV-infected women of childbearing age. This is due to known drug interactions with antiretroviral therapy (medicines used to treat HIV) that may jeopardize contraception effectiveness. By evaluating the impact of antiretroviral therapy on a levonorgestrel subdermal implant, the most widely available hormone implant in low and middle-income countries, this study will translate its findings into an evidence-based approach to co-manage these important medications. The investigators hypothesize that women receiving nevirapine or efavirenz-based antiretroviral therapy will have a significant decrease in the mean levonorgestrel plasma concentration measured six months after the implant's insertion as compared to those women who are not taking antiretroviral therapy. Although the implant's efficacy may be retained initially, the investigators propose that a decrease in levonorgestrel concentrations in women receiving antiretroviral therapy may jeopardize the implant's effectiveness near the end of its intended duration of use (5 years).

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: HIV; Contraception
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Levonorgestrel; Drug: Nevirapine; Drug: Efavirenz

Detailed Description

Family planning services, including hormone contraceptives, are critical for HIV-infected women, in whom prevention of unintended pregnancy not only decreases maternal and child mortality, but also reduces the risk of mother-to-child HIV transmission. Similarly, antiretroviral therapy (ART) is a lifesaving intervention that improves the health and economic status of HIV-infected women throughout the world. Therefore, it is of significant public health importance to guide the appropriate use these essential medications. To this end, millions of HIV-infected women in low and middle income countries (LMIC) currently use or are gaining access to subdermal progestin-containing implants as a preferred method of long-acting reversible contraception. These implants are often combined with ART despite the lack of critically needed pharmacokinetic (PK) drug-interaction data to inform their safe and effective concomitant use. Highlighting this concern are several case reports of unintended pregnancy that occurred in patients with subdermal progestin-containing implants concurrently receiving non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)-based ART, the most commonly used ART in LMICs. While NNRTIs are known to significantly decrease oral pill progestin concentrations, no data are available to inform healthcare providers of the impact of NNRTIs on progestin concentrations following release from subdermal implants. To fill this critical gap in knowledge, the overall aim of this proposal is to conduct a PK study to evaluate the combination of a levonorgestrel (LNG) implant and NNRTI (nevirapine or efavirenz)-based ART in HIV-infected Ugandan women. The investigators propose that lower LNG concentrations will be observed in patients on NNRTI-based ART and although the implant's efficacy may be retained initially, this negative interaction will jeopardize implant effectiveness near the end of its intended duration of use (5 years). The specific aims of this project are (1) to characterize the PK of LNG released from a subdermal implant over one year in HIV-infected women with and without NNRTI-based ART and (2) to evaluate the potential for a bidirectional drug-interaction resulting from the long-term impact of chronic progestin exposure on antiretroviral concentrations. To achieve these aims, this study will enroll 20 HIV-infected women into each of three study groups: a control group not receiving ART and two treatment arms consisting of patients receiving nevirapine- or efavirenz- based ART. Using sparse PK sampling strategies, LNG, nevirapine or efavirenz concentrations will be measured over one-year and compared between and within groups, as appropriate. The LNG data will also be used to develop a PK model that will predict LNG disposition over the following three years of intended use, allowing for identification of the safe duration of LNG implant use in women on NNRTI-based ART. At the conclusion of this project, the first evidence-based medical knowledge will be available to guide the safe and effective concomitant use of subdermal LNG implants and NNRTIs, thereby improving management of reproductive health in millions of HIV-infected women worldwide.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 60
• Phase: Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Uganda
  • Kampala, Uganda
    • Infectious Diseases Institute

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Evidence of a personally signed and dated informed consent document indicating that the subject (or a legal representative) has been informed of all pertinent aspects of the study.
• Subjects who are willing and able to comply with scheduled visits, treatment plan, laboratory tests, and other study procedures.
• Women age 18 years or older
• Diagnosed with HIV-1 infection
• Desiring LNG subdermal implant as a contraceptive method
• Subjects not yet eligible for ART (based on the Ugandan Treatment Guidelines); or subjects receiving nevirapine or efavirenz-based ART for a minimum of 1 month prior to screening

Exclusion Criteria:

• For patients currently on ART: HIV-1 RNA > 400 copies/mL at screening visit
• Serum hemoglobin < 9.0 g/dl
• Elevations in serum levels of alanine transaminase (ALT) above 5 times the upper limit of normal
• Elevations in serum creatinine above 2.5 times the upper limit of normal
• Use of drugs known to be contraindicated with levonorgestrel, nevirapine (NVP group only), or efavirenz (EFV group only) within 30 days of study entry. Due to the dynamic nature of drug interactions related to antiretroviral therapy, the study team will review all concomitant medications at screening based on the US Department of Health and Human Services drug interaction tables or the AIDS Clinical Trials Group Drug Interactions Database.
• Currently pregnant or postpartum <30 days at study entry
• No concurrent use of other hormonal contraception is allowed during the study period

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Control group (no current ART); Levonorgestrel subdermal implant in subjects not yet receiving ART (control group)	Drug: Levonorgestrel; Levonorgestrel 2-rod subdermal implant (75mg/rod) placed on study day 0 after baseline evaluations and remains in place until the subject requests removal or for the duration of drug activity (currently approved for 5 years).; Other Names: Jadelle; SinoImplant
Active Comparator: NVP-based ART group; Levonorgestrel subdermal implant in subjects receiving nevirapine-based ART	Drug: Levonorgestrel; Levonorgestrel 2-rod subdermal implant (75mg/rod) placed on study day 0 after baseline evaluations and remains in place until the subject requests removal or for the duration of drug activity (currently approved for 5 years).; Other Names: Jadelle; SinoImplant; Drug: Nevirapine; Nevirapine 200mg twice daily as part of a complete antiretroviral therapy regimen. Subjects will be on this therapy prior to entry in this study.; Other Names: Viramune; NVP
Active Comparator: EFV-based ART group; Levonorgestrel subdermal implant in subjects receiving efavirenz-based ART	Drug: Levonorgestrel; Levonorgestrel 2-rod subdermal implant (75mg/rod) placed on study day 0 after baseline evaluations and remains in place until the subject requests removal or for the duration of drug activity (currently approved for 5 years).; Other Names: Jadelle; SinoImplant; Drug: Efavirenz; Efavirenz 600mg once daily as part of a complete antiretroviral therapy regimen. Subjects will be on this therapy prior to entry in this study.; Other Names: Sustiva; Atripla; Stocrin; EFV

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Levonorgestrel plasma concentrations	Levonorgestrel plasma concentrations	6 months and 1 year after implant

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) plasma concentrations	Applies to subjects being treated with either efavirenz- or nevirapine-based antiretroviral therapy	Over 1 year (baseline, Months 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Nebraska
• Collaborators: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD); Makerere University; University of Liverpool
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Kimberly K Scarsi, PharmD, MSc, University of Nebraska

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Scarsi KK*, Darin KM, Nakalema S, Back D, Byakika-Kibwika P, Else L, Dilly-Penchala S, Cohn S, Merry C, Lamorde M. Levonorgestrel implant + EFV-based ART: Unintended pregnancies and associated PK Data. Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. Seattle, WA. February 23-26, 2015. Abstract #85LB.
• Scarsi K, Lamorde M, Darin K, Penchala SD, Else L, Nakalema S, Byakika-Kibwika P, Khoo S, Cohn S, Merry C, Back D. Efavirenz- but not nevirapine-based antiretroviral therapy decreases exposure to the levonorgestrel released from a sub-dermal contraceptive implant. J Int AIDS Soc. 2014 Nov 2;17(4 Suppl 3):19484. doi: 10.7448/IAS.17.4.19484. eCollection 2014.
• Scarsi KK, Darin KM, Nakalema S, Back DJ, Byakika-Kibwika P, Else LJ, Dilly Penchala S, Buzibye A, Cohn SE, Merry C, Lamorde M. Unintended Pregnancies Observed With Combined Use of the Levonorgestrel Contraceptive Implant and Efavirenz-based Antiretroviral Therapy: A Three-Arm Pharmacokinetic Evaluation Over 48 Weeks. Clin Infect Dis. 2016 Mar 15;62(6):675-682. doi: 10.1093/cid/civ1001. Epub 2015 Dec 8.

Helpful Links

• CID Open Access publication

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 4, 2014
• Primary Completion (Actual): September 1, 2014
• Study Completion (Actual): March 4, 2015

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 7, 2013
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 8, 2013
• First Posted (Estimated): February 12, 2013

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): September 1, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 30, 2023
• Last Verified: August 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Nevirapine; Pharmacokinetics; Efavirenz; Levonorgestrel
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Physiological Effects of Drugs; Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action; Anti-Infective Agents; Antiviral Agents; Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors; Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors; Enzyme Inhibitors; Anti-HIV Agents; Anti-Retroviral Agents; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme Inhibitors; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme Inducers; Contraceptive Agents, Hormonal; Contraceptive Agents; Reproductive Control Agents; Contraceptives, Oral; Contraceptive Agents, Female; Cytochrome P-450 CYP3A Inducers; Contraceptives, Oral, Synthetic; Cytochrome P-450 CYP2B6 Inducers; Cytochrome P-450 CYP2C9 Inhibitors; Cytochrome P-450 CYP2C19 Inhibitors; Nevirapine; Levonorgestrel; Efavirenz
• Other Study ID Numbers: 0022-14-EP; 1R21HD074462-01 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No