FDA Panel Nixes 2 Nonhormonal Meds for Hot Flashes
March 6, 2013 -- An FDA panel has rejected two nonhormonal options for the treatment of moderate to severe hot flashes resulting from menopause.
Although all panel members agreed that nonhormonal treatments are needed to relieve the hot flashes that make life difficult for many postmenopausal women, they decided to say no to Sefelsa (gabapentin) and low-dose Pexeva (paroxetine mesylate).
If either drug were approved by the FDA, it would be the first nonhormonal drugs for hot flashes on the market. Gabapentin is an antiseizure medication. Paroxetine mesylate is being offered as a low-dose version of the antidepressant Pexeva. Both drugs have been used "off-label" by doctors to help women with hot flashes.
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Sefelsa
The panel voted 12-2 against Sefelsa, saying they were unimpressed by the drug's limited effectiveness in controlling hot flashes in light of its possible mental health side effects and other central nervous system effects.
Kathryn M. Curtis, PhD, from the CDC, calls Sefelsa's effect "limited and modest" in explaining her no vote.
"We all understand the huge need for a nonhormonal treatment for [hot flashes], but approving a drug that has a very modest effect is almost misleading to those women who are really looking for something that is very effective," Curtis says.
Valerie Montgomery Rice, MD, from Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, echoes her sentiments.
"As much as I would love to have nonhormonal alternatives for women, I'm concerned about the sustainability and the limited [effectiveness] of this product. I'm also concerned about the dizziness and disorientation with this drug. We just have to keep trying," she says.
Linda Keyes, a consumer representative on the panel and one of the two yes voters, says the demand and desire for such nonhormonal treatment "is high enough that I feel that a very modest reduction is still acceptable, assuming the risks are known and carefully watched, which I believe they can be."
Keyes says women are very aware of the risks with Sefelsa. "It's all over the Internet. While I don't think that's a justification for approval, I do think it might be a reason for increased guidance and regulation. It might be better just putting gabapentin out there."