Study to Evaluate the Equivalence of Estradiol Vaginal Cream to Reference Standard in the Treatment of Vaginal Atrophy

Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel-Design, Multi-Site Study to Evaluate Therapeutic Equivalence of Estradiol Vaginal Cream, USP, 0.01% (Prasco LLC) to Estrace® Cream (Warner Chilcott) in Treatment of Vulvar and Vaginal Atrophy

The objectives of this study are to evaluate the therapeutic equivalence of the Test formulation, Estradiol Vaginal Cream 0.01% (Prasco, LLC) to the marketed product, Estrace® Cream (estradiol vaginal cream, 0.01%) in patients with vulvar and vaginal atrophy, and compare the safety of Test, Reference and Placebo treatments in patients with vulvar and vaginal atrophy.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Vulvar and Vaginal Atrophy
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Estradiol Vaginal Cream; Drug: Estrace® Cream; Drug: Vehicle Cream

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 540
• Phase: Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • California
    • Sacramento, California, United States, 95821
      • Douglas Young, MD
    • San Diego, California, United States, 92108
      • Medical Center for Clinical Research
    • San Diego, California, United States, 92111
      • Women's Health Care Research Corp.
  • Colorado
    • Denver, Colorado, United States, 80209
      • Downtown Women's Health Care
  • Florida
    • DeLand, Florida, United States, 32720
      • Avail Clinical Research, LLC
    • Jupiter, Florida, United States, 33458
      • Health Awareness, Inc.
    • Miami, Florida, United States, 33186
      • New Age Medical Research Corporation
    • Miami Lakes, Florida, United States, 33014
      • Panax Clinical Research
    • New Port Richey, Florida, United States, 34652
      • Suncoast Clinical Research
    • Ormond Beach, Florida, United States, 32174
      • Ormond Medical Arts Pharmaceutical Research Center
    • Port Saint Lucie, Florida, United States, 34952
      • Health Awareness, Inc.
    • Saint Petersburg, Florida, United States, 33709
      • Meridien Research, Inc.
    • Sarasota, Florida, United States, 34239
      • Physician Care Clinical Research, LLC
    • South Miami, Florida, United States, 33143
      • Well Pharma Medical Research Group
    • West Palm Beach, Florida, United States, 33409
      • Comprehensive Clinical Trials, Llc
  • Kansas
    • Wichita, Kansas, United States, 67226
      • Cypress Medical Research Center, LLC
  • Louisiana
    • Marrero, Louisiana, United States, 70072
      • Praetorian Pharmaceutical
    • Metairie, Louisiana, United States, 70001
      • Southern Clinical Research Associates
  • Michigan
    • Canton, Michigan, United States, 48187
      • Canton Obstetrics and Gynecology
    • Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States, 49009
      • Beyer Research
  • Nebraska
    • Lincoln, Nebraska, United States, 68510
      • Women's Clinic of Lincoln
  • New Jersey
    • Lawrenceville, New Jersey, United States, 08648
      • Lawrence Ob-Gyn Clinical Research, LLC
  • Ohio
    • Columbus, Ohio, United States, 43213
      • Aventiv Research, Inc.
  • Pennsylvania
    • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 15219
      • Novum PRS
  • South Carolina
    • Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, United States, 29464
      • Coastal Carolina Research Center
  • Texas
    • Dallas, Texas, United States, 75230
      • Vernon & Waldrep OBGYN Associates
  • Washington
    • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98105
      • Women's Clinical Research Center dba Seattle Women's Health, Research, Gynecology

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 26 years to 71 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Signed IRB-approved informed consent form that meets all criteria of current FDA regulations.

2. Postmenopausal females aged 30-75 years inclusive. Postmenopausal is defined as follows:

   1. At least 6 months of spontaneous amenorrhea.
   2. At least 6 weeks post-surgical bilateral oophorectomy, with or without hysterectomy.
   3. Hysterectomy without oophorectomy if of age that the Investigator believes would have naturally reached 12 months of spontaneous amenorrhea if uterus had remained intact.
3. Patients with a serum Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) level of ≥ 40 mIU/mL at Screening.
4. Have ≤ 5% superficial cells on vaginal smear cytology.
5. Have a vaginal pH > 5.0.

6. At least one of the following patient self-assessed moderate to severe symptoms of VVA from the following list that is identified by the patient as being the most bothersome to her:

   • Vaginal Dryness
   • Vaginal and/or Vulvar Irritation/Itching
   • Dysuria
   • Vaginal Pain associated with sexual activity

   • Vaginal Bleeding associated with sexual activity (presence or absence)

     • Provided that patient is currently sexually active and plans to remain so throughout the study.
7. Have "Normal" Screening mammogram completed within 9 months before Screening in all patients > 40 years old, with no findings that, in the opinion of the Investigator, would indicate any suspicion of breast malignancy.
8. Normal clinical breast examination at Screening.
9. Patients with an intact uterus (including patients who underwent a partial hysterectomy) must have a documented papanicolaou (PAP) smear conducted within the previous 12 months with no findings that the Investigator believes would contraindicate the use of topical vaginal estradiol.
10. Patients with an intact uterus should have vaginal ultrasonography results within 3 months before Screening to confirm an inactive endometrial lining, defined as endometrial thickness < 4 mm.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Significant history or current evidence of chronic infectious disease, system disorder, organ disorder or other medical condition that in the Investigator's opinion would place the study patient at undue risk by participation or could jeopardize the integrity of the study evaluations.
2. Any clinically significant laboratory finding that, in the Investigator's opinion would contraindicate the use of estradiol or compromise patient safety.
3. Patients with known concurrent vaginal infections including but not limited to: Candida albicans, Trichomonas vaginalis, Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhea or Gardnerella vaginalis.
4. Patients with active vaginal herpes simplex infection or have had an outbreak within 30 days before the Screening.
5. Patients with known, suspected or current history of carcinoma of the breast.
6. Patients with baseline systolic blood pressure of > 150 mmHg and/or diastolic pressure > 90 mmHg.
7. Any patient with past or current undiagnosed vaginal bleeding or significant risk factors for endometrial cancer.
8. Any history of estrogen-dependent neoplasia (e.g., endometrial cancer).
9. Patients with known, suspected or current history of hormone dependent tumor.
10. History of acute thrombophlebitis or thromboembolic disorder.
11. Any prescription treatment for vaginal dryness/irritation within 14 days before Screening or any over-the-counter or natural remedies within 7 days before Screening.
12. Any prescription treatment for bacterial or yeast infections within 30 days before Screening.
13. Fasting triglyceride levels > 350 mg/dL.
14. History of radiation therapy or recent (within previous 6 weeks) surgical therapy to the vaginal or cervical areas.
15. Any known or suspected allergies that, in the Investigator's opinion, would compromise the safety of the patient.
16. Patients who have used vaginal hormonal products (rings, creams, gels) within the 7 days before Screening.
17. Patients who have used transdermal estrogen and/or progestin therapy within the 28 days before Screening.
18. Patients who have used oral estrogen and/or progestin therapy or intrauterine progestin therapy within the 56 days before Screening.
19. Patients who have used progestin implants or estrogen alone injectable drug therapy within the 3 month before Screening.
20. Patients who have used estrogen pellet therapy or progestin injectable drug therapy within 6 months before Screening.
21. History of significant alcohol abuse within 1 year prior to Screening or regular use of alcohol within 6 months before Screening (more than 14 units of alcohol per week [1 unit = 150 mL of wine, 360 mL of beer, or 45 mL of 40% alcohol]).
22. History of significant drug abuse within 1 year prior to Screening, use of soft drugs (such as marijuana) within 3 months before Screening, or hard drugs (such as cocaine, phencyclidine [PCP], crack, opioid derivatives including heroin, and amphetamine derivatives) within 1 year before Screening.
23. Use within 30 days of Screening with known strong CYP3A4 inducers or inhibitors that, in the opinion of the Investigator, may affect estrogen metabolism. Examples of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors are macrolide antibiotics such as clarithromycin and telithromycin; azole antifungals such as itraconazole and ketoconazole; antidepressants such as nefazodone; and foods such as grapefruit or grapefruit juice. Examples of strong CYP3A4 inducers are anticonvulsants such as carbamazepine and phenytoin; bactericidals such as rifampin and rifabutin; and natural health products such as St. John's wort.
24. Inability to understand the requirements of the study and the relative information or are unable or not willing to comply with the study protocol.
25. Receipt of any drug as part of a research study within 30 days before Screening.
26. Employees of the Investigator or research center or their immediate family members.
27. Patients who have participated in this study previously.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Quadruple

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Experimental: Estradiol Vaginal Cream, USP, 0.01% (Prasco LLC); Estradiol Vaginal Cream, USP, 0.01%, administered once daily for 7 days. Intervention: Drug: Estradiol Vaginal Cream, USP, 0.01%	Drug: Estradiol Vaginal Cream; Estradiol Vaginal Cream
Active Comparator: Active Comparator: Estrace® Cream; Estrace® Cream (Estradiol Vaginal Cream, USP, 0.01%), administered once daily for 7 days. Intervention: Drug: Estrace® Cream (Estradiol Vaginal Cream, USP, 0.01%)	Drug: Estrace® Cream; Estrace® Cream; Other Names: Estradiol Vaginal Cream
Placebo Comparator: Placebo Comparator: Placebo (Test vehicle cream) Vaginal Cream; Placebo (Test vehicle cream) Vaginal Cream, administered once daily for 7 days. Intervention: Drug: Placebo (Test vehicle cream) Vaginal Cream	Drug: Vehicle Cream; Vehicle Cream; Other Names: Placebo

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
The Primary Efficacy Endpoint	The primary efficacy endpoint is the number of participants in each treatment group that were identified as Responders at the end of the treatment period evaluated on Day 8 or Day 9. A Responder was defined as a participant with at least a 25% reduction from baseline in the sum of % basal/parabasal + % intermediate cells on vaginal cytology AND vaginal pH < 5.0 with a change from baseline vaginal pH of at least 0.5. Any participant who withdrew from the study because of lack of efficacy was included as a non-responder.	Study Day 8 or Study Day 9

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
The Secondary Efficacy Endpoint	The secondary efficacy endpoint is the number of participants in each treatment group that are considered a Treatment Success at the end of the treatment period evaluated on Day 8 or Day 9. A "Treatment Success" is defined as a score of 0 or 1 on Day 8 or Day 9 for the symptom identified at baseline as the most bothersome. This evaluation will be based on (one) participant self-assessed symptom of VVA (vaginal dryness, vaginal and/or vulvar irritation/itching, dysuria, or vaginal pain associated with sexual activity) on a scale of 0 to 3 where 0 = none and 3 = severe. Evaluation of vaginal bleeding during sexual activity will be based on a score of 1 (presence) if it is identified by the participant as the most bothersome symptom at baseline and a score of 0 (absent) on Day 8 or Day 9.	Study Day 8 or Study Day 9

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Duration of Post-menopausal Status (Years)	Baseline Characteristic for Participants who reported Natural Cause for Menopause (Total n = 373 patients) with mean and standard deviation (SD) evaluated per Arm/Group at Visit 1 (Day -28 to Day -1) during Medical History and Demographics Screening	Visit 1 (Day - 28 to Day -1)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Prasco LLC
• Investigators: Study Director: Gail Gongas, NOVUM

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): October 26, 2017
• Primary Completion (Actual): March 15, 2018
• Study Completion (Actual): March 15, 2018

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 1, 2017
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 1, 2017
• First Posted (Actual): November 6, 2017

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 30, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 3, 2024
• Last Verified: March 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Vaginal Dryness; Vaginal and/or Vulvar Irritation/Itching; Dysuria; Vaginal Pain and Bleeding
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathological Conditions, Anatomical; Atrophy; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Hormones; Hormones, Hormone Substitutes, and Hormone Antagonists; Estrogens; Contraceptive Agents, Hormonal; Contraceptive Agents; Reproductive Control Agents; Contraceptive Agents, Female; Estradiol; Estradiol 17 beta-cypionate; Estradiol 3-benzoate; Polyestradiol phosphate
• Other Study ID Numbers: 71759501

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