title: The tolerability of riluzole in the treatment of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
abstract: Riluzole is the only disease-modifying drug approved for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), in which it has been demonstrated to extend survival. The overall tolerability of riluzole is good and the drug can be used in all patients with ALS except those with elevated transaminase levels or active liver disease. The most frequently encountered adverse events (AEs) that appear to be attributed to riluzole are asthenia and nausea, observed in 18 and 15% of patients taking riluzole in the randomised clinical trial programme, respectively. These same AEs, albeit at a lower frequency, are also reported in Phase IV observational studies and in pharmacovigilance surveys. No unexpected AE clearly related to riluzole has emerged in the seven years that riluzole has been in extensive use in ALS patients. The most important potential safety issue with riluzole is hepatic impact with elevations of transaminases. Serum alanine aminotransferase levels more than three times the upper limit of normal are observed in 10 - 15% of patients. For this reason, strict monitoring of liver enzymes is recommended in patients with ALS taking riluzole, and treatment is contraindicated in subjects with elevated transaminases before the start of treatment. There is a suspicion that riluzole may, in rare cases, cause neutropenia, and physicians should be vigilant towards this risk.
authors.affiliation: Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris et Université Paris VI, Paris, France. gilbert.bensimon@infobiogen.fr
authors.forename: Gilbert
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bensimon
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Doble
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D001247:Asthenia / Q000139:chemically induced; D001711:Biotransformation; D056486:Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury / Q000209:etiology; D017327:Clinical Trials, Phase IV as Topic; D000075202:Contraindications; D018450:Disease Progression; D004347:Drug Interactions; D006801:Humans; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D015337:Multicenter Studies as Topic; D009325:Nausea / Q000139:chemically induced; D009503:Neutropenia / Q000139:chemically induced; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D019782:Riluzole / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012306:Risk
chemical_list: D019782:Riluzole