Azilect

AZILECT- rasagiline mesylate tablet
Aphena Pharma Solutions — Tennessee, LLC

1 INDICATIONS AND USAGE

AZILECT (rasagiline tablets) is indicated for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD).

2 DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION

2.1 General Dosing Recommendations

When AZILECT is prescribed as monotherapy or as adjunct therapy in patients not taking levodopa, patients may start AZILECT at the recommended dose of 1 mg administered orally once daily.

In patients taking levodopa, with or without other PD drugs (e.g., dopamine agonist, amantadine, anticholinergics), the recommended initial dose of AZILECT is 0.5 mg once daily. If the patient tolerates the daily 0.5 mg dose, but a sufficient clinical response is not achieved, the dose may be increased to 1 mg once daily. When AZILECT is used in combination with levodopa, a reduction of the levodopa dose may be considered, based upon individual response.

The recommended doses of AZILECT should not be exceeded because of risk of hypertension [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.1 )].

2.2 Patients Taking Ciprofloxacin or Other CYP1A2 Inhibitors

Patients taking concomitant ciprofloxacin or other CYP1A2 inhibitors should not exceed a dose of AZILECT 0.5 mg once daily [see Warnings and Precautions (5.4), Drug Interactions (7.6), and Clinical Pharmacology (12.3)].

2.3 Patients with Hepatic Impairment

Patients with mild hepatic impairment should not exceed a dose of AZILECT 0.5 mg once daily. AZILECT should not be used in patients with moderate or severe hepatic impairment [see Warnings and Precautions (5.5), Use in Specific Populations (8.6), and Clinical Pharmacology (12.3)].

3 DOSAGE FORMS AND STRENGTHS

AZILECT 0.5 mg Tablets: White to off-white, round, flat, beveled tablets, debossed with “GIL 0.5” on one side and plain on the other side containing, as the active ingredient, rasagiline mesylate equivalent to 0.5 mg of rasagiline base.

AZILECT 1 mg Tablets: White to off-white, round, flat, beveled tablets, debossed with “GIL 1” on one side and plain on the other side containing, as the active ingredient, rasagiline mesylate equivalent to 1 mg of rasagiline base.

4 CONTRAINDICATIONS

AZILECT is contraindicated for use with meperidine, tramadol, methadone, propoxyphene and MAO inhibitors (MAOIs), including other selective MAO-B inhibitors, because of risk of serotonin syndrome [See Warnings and Precautions (5.2)]. At least 14 days should elapse between discontinuation of AZILECT and initiation of treatment with these medications.

AZILECT is contraindicated for use with St. John’s wort and with cyclobenzaprine.

AZILECT is contraindicated for use with dextromethorphan because of risk of episode of psychosis or bizarre behavior.

5 WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS

5.1 Hypertension

Exacerbation of hypertension may occur during treatment with AZILECT. Medication adjustment may be necessary if elevation of blood pressure is sustained. Monitor patients for new onset hypertension or hypertension that is not adequately controlled after starting AZILECT.

In Study 3, AZILECT (1 mg/day) given in conjunction with levodopa, produced an increased incidence of significant blood pressure elevation (systolic > 180 or diastolic > 100 mm Hg) of 4% compared to 3% for placebo [see Adverse Reactions (6.1)].

When used as an adjunct to levodopa (Studies 3 and 4), the risk for developing post-treatment high blood pressure (e.g., systolic > 180 or diastolic >100 mm Hg) combined with a significant increase from baseline (e.g., systolic > 30 or diastolic > 20 mm Hg) was higher for AZILECT (2%) compared to placebo (1%).

Dietary tyramine restriction is not required during treatment with recommended doses of AZILECT. However, certain foods that may contain very high amounts (i.e., more than 150 mg) of tyramine that could potentially cause severe hypertension because of tyramine interaction (including various clinical syndromes referred to as hypertensive urgency, crisis, or emergency) in patients taking AZILECT, even at the recommended doses, due to increased sensitivity to tyramine. Patients should be advised to avoid foods containing a very large amount of tyramine while taking recommended doses of AZILECT because of the potential for large increases in blood pressure including clinical syndromes referred to as hypertensive urgency, crisis, or emergency. AZILECT is a selective inhibitor of MAO-B at the recommended doses of 0.5 or 1 mg daily. Selectivity for inhibiting MAO-B diminishes in a dose-related manner as the dose is progressively increased above the recommended daily doses.

5.2 Serotonin Syndrome

Serotonin syndrome has been reported with concomitant use of an antidepressant (e.g., selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors-SSRIs, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors-SNRIs, tricyclic antidepressants, tetracyclic antidepressants, triazolopyridine antidepressants) and a nonselective MAOI (e.g., phenelzine, tranylcypromine) or selective MAO-B inhibitors, such as selegiline (Eldepryl) and rasagiline (AZILECT). Serotonin syndrome has also been reported with concomitant use of AZILECT with meperidine, tramadol, methadone, or propoxyphene. AZILECT is contraindicated for use with meperidine, tramadol, methadone, propoxyphene and MAO inhibitors (MAOIs), including other selective MAO-B inhibitors [see Contraindications ( 4 ) and Drug Interactions ( 7.1 , 7.2 , 7.3 )].

In the postmarketing period, potentially life-threatening serotonin syndrome has been reported in patients treated with antidepressants concomitantly with AZILECT. Concomitant use of AZILECT with one of many classes of antidepressants (e.g., SSRIs, SNRIs, triazolopyridine, tricyclic or tetracyclic antidepressants) is not recommended [see Drug Interactions ( 7.5 )] .

The symptoms of serotonin syndrome have included behavioral and cognitive/mental status changes (e.g., confusion, hypomania, hallucinations, agitation, delirium, headache, and coma), autonomic effects (e.g., syncope, shivering, sweating, high fever/hyperthermia, hypertension, tachycardia, nausea, diarrhea), and somatic effects (e.g., muscular rigidity, myoclonus, muscle twitching, hyperreflexia manifested by clonus, and tremor). Serotonin syndrome can result in death.

AZILECT clinical trials did not allow concomitant use of fluoxetine or fluvoxamine with AZILECT, and the potential drug interaction between AZILECT and antidepressants has not been studied systematically. Although a small number of AZILECT-treated patients were concomitantly exposed to antidepressants (tricyclics n=115; SSRIs n=141), the exposure, both in dose and number of subjects, was not adequate to rule out the possibility of an untoward reaction from combining these agents. At least 14 days should elapse between discontinuation of AZILECT and initiation of treatment with a SSRI, SNRI, tricyclic, tetracyclic, or triazolopyridine antidepressant. Because of the long half-lives of certain antidepressants (e.g., fluoxetine and its active metabolite), at least five weeks (perhaps longer, especially if fluoxetine has been prescribed chronically and/or at higher doses) should elapse between discontinuation of fluoxetine and initiation of AZILECT [see Drug Interactions (7.5)].

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