title: Safety, tolerability, and efficacy of continuous transdermal dopaminergic stimulation with rotigotine patch in early-stage idiopathic Parkinson disease.
abstract: Rotigotine is a new dopamine agonist with transdermal patch formulation for the treatment of Parkinson disease. The aim of this study was to investigate safety and efficacy of rotigotine in patients with early-stage Parkinson disease. In this open-label, dose-escalation, safety and efficacy study, 31 patients in the early stages of idiopathic Parkinson disease received rotigotine to a maximum of 18.0 mg/day. Of the 29 patients who completed the 28-day treatment phase, 24 were maintained at the maximum dose level. The drug was well tolerated, and skin reactions were mild. A statistically significant improvement in UPDRS I, II, and III scores was observed from baseline to end of treatment for the 29 subjects who completed the trial. Mean improvement (+/- standard deviation) was -0.41 +/- 0.78 on UPDRS I (P = 0.0078), -2.76 +/- 3.31 on UPDRS II (P = 0.0001), and -4.62 +/- 5.32 on UPDRS III (P < 0.0001). When results were stratified by maximum dose achieved, significant improvements were seen on all 3 subscores for patients achieving the maximum dose. These data suggest that rotigotine is a safe, well-tolerated, and effective treatment for early-stage Parkinson disease.
authors.affiliation: Little Company of Mary Medical Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.
authors.forename: Werner M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Güldenpfennig
authors.forename: Kathryn H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Poole
authors.forename: Kenneth W
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Sommerville
authors.forename: Babak
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Boroojerdi
mesh_terms: D000279:Administration, Cutaneous; D000368:Aged; D000978:Antiparkinson Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018491:Dopamine Agonists / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013764:Tetrahydronaphthalenes / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013876:Thiophenes / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000978:Antiparkinson Agents; D018491:Dopamine Agonists; D013764:Tetrahydronaphthalenes; D013876:Thiophenes; C047508:rotigotine