Fewer gout meds in future?

[Keith Taylor]

Gout sufferers need 2 types of gout meds: pain relief and uric acid control.

Once uric acid is safe, gout pain relief is not required. Safe means uric acid below 6mg/dL with no flares for at least 6 months. Allopurinol is the first choice for uric acid lowering. Allopurinol alternatives are available if allopurinol is not suitable for genetic reasons, or if it is not tolerated by the gout patient. All these treatments for lowering uric acid usually require pain relief in the first few months.

This complicates prescribing, and resulting confusion is one of the reasons why many gout patients fail to take the right meds. Now, CymaBay Therapeutics are developing an alternative that lowers uric acid and inflammation.

Arhalofenate is a once-daily, oral therapy under development for the treatment of gout that has demonstrated the ability to reduce gout flares and reduce serum uric acid (sUA) in clinical studies completed to date. Arhalofenate has a dual mechanism of action with both anti-inflammatory and uricosuric properties.

The company have just released: CymaBay Completes Enrollment in its Phase 2b Study of Arhalofenate in Patients with Gout

That press release describes current clinical trials that expect to report results by second quarter 2015. The main purpose of the trials is to measure the number of gout flares with arhalofenate 800 mg compared to allopurinol 300 mg over 12 weeks. There are several other comparisons about the nature of gout flares, and uric acid levels.

I’m still of the opinion that more effort should be put into doctor-patient education, rather than expensive new treatments. However, a new weapon in the fight against gout is always welcome.

[Author]

Posts