An open-label prospective study of the real-life use of onabotulinumtoxinA for the treatment of chronic migraine: the REPOSE study

Fayyaz AhmedEmail author,
Charly Gaul,
Juan Carlos García-Moncó,
Katherine Sommer,
Paolo Martelletti and
on behalf of the REPOSE Principal Investigators

The Journal of Headache and PainOfficial Journal of the "European Headache Federation" and of "Lifting The Burden - The Global Campaign against Headache"201920:26

https://doi.org/10.1186/s10194-019-0976-1

Received: 16 October 2018
Accepted: 20 February 2019
Published: 7 March 2019

Abstract

Background

The PREEMPT Studies established onabotulinumtoxinA as preventive treatment for adults with chronic migraine (CM). The purpose of the REal-life use of botulinum toxin for the symptomatic treatment of adults with chronic migraine, measuring healthcare resource utilisation, and Patient-reported OutcomeS observed in practice (REPOSE) Study was to observe real-life, long-term (24-month) use of onabotulinumtoxinA in adults with CM and report on the utilisation, effectiveness, safety, and tolerability.

Methods

The REPOSE Study was a European, open-label, multicentre, prospective, noninterventional study. Patients received onabotulinumtoxinA approximately every 12 weeks according to their physician’s usual practice, guided by the summary of product characteristics (SPC). Patients were observed for 24 months after initiating onabotulinumtoxinA treatment. Outcome measures were collected at baseline and all administration visits and included onabotulinumtoxinA injection practices, headache-day frequency, Migraine-Specific Quality-of-Life Questionnaire (MSQ), EuroQol 5-Dimension Questionnaire (EQ-5D), and adverse drug reactions (ADRs) to evaluate safety/tolerability.

Results

Of 641 patients enrolled, 633 received ≥1 dose of onabotulinumtoxinA for a total of 3499 treatment sessions. At baseline, mean (SD) age was 45.4 (11.7) years; patients were predominantly women (85.3%). Injection practices closely followed the SPC in mean dosage (155.1 U) and injection sites per session (31.4), with the exception of a prolongation of the recommended 12-week dosing interval, with 79.1% of patients receiving ≥1 treatment session that was > 13 weeks after the previous treatment session. Headache-day frequency was reduced from a baseline mean (SD) of 20.6 (5.4) to 7.4 (6.6) days at administration visit 8 (P < 0.001). Each MSQ domain (restrictive, preventive, and emotional) was significantly reduced from baseline through each administration visit (P < 0.001). The median EQ-5D total and health state scores were significantly improved from baseline through each administration visit (P < 0.001). Overall, 18.3% of patients reported an ADR; most were mild to moderate intensity, with only 1.3% of patients reporting a serious ADR. Eyelid ptosis (5.4%), neck pain (2.8%), and musculoskeletal stiffness (2.7%) were the most frequently reported.

Conclusions

Long-term, real-world preventive treatment of CM with onabotulinumtoxinA showed effectiveness with a sustained reduction in headache-day frequency and significant improvement in quality-of-life measures. ADRs were mild to moderate, with no new safety concerns identified.

Trial registration

Trial registration number: NCT01686581. Name of registry: ClinicalTrials.gov. URL of registry: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01686581. Date of retrospective registration: September 18, 2012. Date of enrolment of first patient: July 23, 2012.