Analysis of hereditary angioedema attacks requiring a second dose of ecallantide

Background: Effective treatment of acute attacks is critical in managing hereditary angioedema (HAE). Ecallantide, a plasma kallikrein inhibitor, is approved for the treatment of HAE attacks. Occasionally, a second dose is needed when treating attacks of HAE.

Objective: To evaluate the characteristics of HAE attacks requiring a second dose (dose B) of ecallantide.

Methods: Data from all ecallantide clinical trials (EDEMA2, EDEMA4, and DX-88/19) that allowed an open-label dose B were included in this analysis. Patient and attack characteristics potentially predictive of dose B after ecallantide were analyzed by logistic regression. A multivariate model was built using a backward selection process, incorporating variables from the univariate model with P < .20 and removing factors with the highest P value until only significant (P < .05) factors remained.

Results: The analysis included 732 ecallantide-treated HAE attacks in 179 patients. Dose B was required in 88 attacks (12.0%), most (80.5%) for incomplete response. By attack location, 31 of 325 abdominal attacks (9.5%), 17 of 158 laryngeal attacks (10.8%), and 40 of 242 peripheral attacks (16.5%) required dose B. On the basis of the univariate analysis, baseline severity (odds ratio = 1.33, P = .15) and peripheral attack (odds ratio = 1.80, P = .01) were identified as potential predictive factors; abdominal attacks had an inverse correlation (odds ratio = 0.64, P = .055). However, the multivariate analysis identified only peripheral attacks as statistically significantly correlated (P < .05) with dose B requirement.

Conclusion: A single, 30-mg dose of ecallantide was effective for most HAE attacks (88.0%). Patients with peripheral attacks of HAE were more likely to require a second dose of ecallantide after 4 hours.

Trial registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifiers: not applicable for EDEMA2 (trial was conducted before registration requirements were implemented), NCT00457015 for EDEMA4, and NCT00456508 for DX-88/19.