pimavanserin and Psychomotor-Agitation

Patients with Alzheimer's disease psychosis (ADP) commonly experience concomitant agitation and aggression. We investigated whether a reduction in ADP following pimavanserin treatment conferred a reduction in associated agitation and aggression.. ACP-103-019 was a 12-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study that evaluated the efficacy of pimavanserin (34 mg) in reducing psychotic symptoms in patients with ADP. The primary endpoint was change from baseline in Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Nursing Home Version-Psychosis Score (NPI-NH-PS) at week six. A post hoc analysis examined whether there was a greater reduction in agitation and aggression (NPI-NH domain C [agitation/aggression] and Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory-Short Form [CMAI-SF]) in pimavanserin-treated patients who experienced a reduction of hallucinations and delusions (psychosis responders defined as ≥50% reduction from baseline in NPI-NH-PS, week six) when compared with those who did not (nonresponders).. Pimavanserin-treated patients with ≥50% response in psychotic symptoms (n = 44) showed a greater improvement in agitation and aggression symptoms on the NPI-NH domain C (week six, least squares mean [LSM] difference = -3.64, t = -4.69, P < .0001) and the CMAI-SF (week six, LSM difference = -3.71, t = -2.01, P = .0483) than nonresponders (n = 32). Differences between psychosis responders and nonresponders were also observed in patients with more severe agitation and aggression at baseline on the NPI-NH domain C (responders, n = 26; nonresponders, n = 13; week six, LSM difference = -3.03, t = -2.44, P = .019).. Patients with ADP, who show improvement in psychotic symptoms after pimavanserin treatment, also experience an improvement in concomitant agitation and aggression.

Topics: Aggression; Alzheimer Disease; Double-Blind Method; Humans; Piperidines; Psychomotor Agitation; Psychotic Disorders; Treatment Outcome; Urea

Topics: Akathisia, Drug-Induced; Antipsychotic Agents; Aripiprazole; Basal Ganglia Diseases; Dopamine Agonists; Dopamine Antagonists; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Humans; Piperazines; Piperidines; Positron-Emission Tomography; Psychomotor Agitation; Quinolones; Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT1A; Receptors, Dopamine D2; Schizophrenia; Serotonin 5-HT1 Receptor Agonists; Urea