MedPath

Eosinophil-driven Corticotherapy for Patients Hospitalized for COPD Exacerbation

Phase 3
Recruiting
Conditions
COPD Exacerbation
Interventions
Drug: 5 days of placebo
Drug: 5 days of systemic corticotherapy (prednisone)
Registration Number
NCT04234360
Lead Sponsor
University Hospital, Montpellier
Brief Summary

The primary objective of this study is to compare treatment failure rates between a group of eosinophilic (eosinophilia \> 2% on day 1 of hospitalization) patients hospitalised for a COPD exacerbation treated via corticotherapy versus a similar group treated via placebo.

Secondarily, treatment failure rates will also be compared between a group of non-eosinophilic patients hospitalised for a COPD exacerbation treated via corticotherapy versus a similar group treated via placebo. Study arms will also be compared for additional aspects of efficacy and safety:

* speed of recovery during the initial hospitalization;

* corticosteroid side effects / induced comorbidities;

* changes in symptoms and episodes of exacerbation;

* pulmonary function, oxygen use and ventilation;

* patient trajectories and resource use (e.g. survival, consults, episodes of hospitalization, medications);

* drug consumption (especially as relates to COPD management, exacerbations and induced comorbidities);

* health status, quality of life, activity/disability;

* patient safety / adverse events in general.

Eosinophilia thresholds optimizing the prediction of corticosteroid response and COPD outcomes will be re-evaluated. The relationships between corticosteroid response and key biomarkers (e.g. infectious groups) will be thoroughly explored, including within eosinophil strata. Potential gender subgroups differences will also be evaluated.

Finally, in prevision of further exploratory studies, a biological collection and an imaging library will be created in association with this protocol. The biological collection will be used to explore the genetic basis and physiology linked with treatment response, gender and patient trajectories. The image library will be used as a platform for the exploration of new imaging markers developed, for example, via machine learning and affiliated techniques.

Detailed Description

Not available

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
600
Inclusion Criteria
  • Adult patients admitted to a participating hospital (ward, ICU or emergency services) for an acute COPD exacerbation
  • For patients with known COPD: COPD defined according to GOLD 2018 criteria: (1) Post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC < 70% of predicted values; (2) > 10 pack years smoking history
  • For incident COPD cases with no spirometric history: symptoms and exposure according to GOLD 2018 report will be considered for the diagnosis, but if the spirometric diagnosis is not confirmed during follow-up, then the patient will be excluded
  • Signed consent has been obtained, or the appropriate emergency procedure (under French law) allows enrolment
  • Subjects must be covered by public health insurance
  • Patient available for 3 months of follow-up. Subjects must be able to attend all scheduled visits and to comply with all trial procedures.
Exclusion Criteria
  • Subject unable to read or write; language barrier
  • Subject who is in a dependency or employment with the sponsor or investigator
  • Pregnancy or lactation
  • Patients who are prisoners or under other forms of judicial protection
  • Patients under any kind of guardianship
  • The patient has already participated in the present protocol
  • The patient is participating in another interventional study or has done so in the past 3 months
  • The patient is in an exclusion period determined by a previous study
  • The patient has been taking long-term systemic corticosteroids for longer than 1 month prior to inclusion
  • The patient has already received > 1 mg/kg of systemic corticotherapy in the past 48h
  • Intubated-ventilated patient
  • Administration of oral experimental drug is impossible
  • Cancer within the last 12 months
  • Current diagnosis of Asthma
  • T2-inflammation targeting biologics (Benralizumab, reslizumab, mepolizumab, dupilumab) treatment
  • Admitted for any other reason including, but not limited to, pulmonary embolism, pneumothorax, heart failure
  • Known allergy to corticosteroids
  • Consideration of a potential negative drug interaction with corticosteroids (at the investigator's discretion)
  • White blood cell formula already performed and distributed to implicated teams
  • Directives for limitation-of-care ("LATA" in French) already established
  • SARS-Cov2 positive test carry out during the COPD exacerbation

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Eosinophil count > 2%; placebo5 days of placeboEosinophilic patients randomized to this arm will receive 5 days of placebo.
Eosinophil count <= 2%; placebo5 days of placeboNon-eosinophilic patients randomized to this arm will receive 5 days of placebo.
Eosinophil count > 2%; corticotherapy5 days of systemic corticotherapy (prednisone)Eosinophilic patients randomized to this arm will receive 5 days of corticotherapy.
Eosinophil count <= 2%; corticotherapy5 days of systemic corticotherapy (prednisone)Non-eosinophilic patients randomized to this arm will receive 5 days of corticotherapy.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Treatment failure3 months

Treatment failure for the primary outcome is defined according to Niewoehner et al. (1999) as death from any cause or need for intubation and mechanical ventilation, readmission due to COPD, or intensification of pharmacologic therapy (defined as the prescription of open-label systemic glucocorticoids, high-dose inhaled glucocorticoids (more than eight puffs per day of triamcinolone acetonide or its equivalent), theophylline, or any combination of these three therapies) at three months. In addition, an investigator meeting determined additional components of treatment failure that should be added to Niewoehner's definition in order to bring it up-to-date :

* Initiation of non-invasive ventilation for \>24h after first treatment administration

* Transfer to intensive care or indication for a transfer to intensive care. Incident limitations-of-care that can affect treatment failure should also be carefully noted.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Body mass index3 month
The speed of initial recovery: Time elapsed before showing signs of improvementDuring initial hospitalization (expected maximum of 28 days)
The speed of initial recovery: Time elapsed in acidosis/hypercapniaDuring initial hospitalization (expected maximum of 28 days)
Presence /absence of comorbidities or steroid side effects: glycemia3 months
The occurrence of new or worsened diabetes/hyperglycemiaThroughout the study (3 months)
The occurrence of any other potentially corticosteroid-induced comorbidities throughout the studyThroughout the study; 3 months
Episodes of infectionThroughout the study; 3 months

Beginning and end dates of episodes.

Residual volume (litres)3 months
Residual volume (% predicted)3 months
Total lung capacity (litres)3 months
Total lung capacity (% predicted)3 months
ConsultsThroughout the study; 3 months

The number of consults and rehabilitation/therapy sessions in relation to COPD/respiratory symptoms (or not) will be tracked.

The speed of initial recovery: Time elapsed before meeting pre-defined discharge criteriaDuring initial hospitalization (expected maximum of 28 days)

Time elapsed before meeting pre-defined discharge criteria (acidosis has normalized, symptoms have returned to manageable levels, the patient is capable of performing minimal daily activities).

Hospital anxiety and depression scale (HAD)3 months

The HAD results in a score ranging from 0 (low anxiety or depression) to 21 (strong anxiety or depression).

Episodes of moderate exacerbation.Throughout the study; 3 months

Episodes of exacerbation will be recorded (date of start/finish for each episode) throughout the study.

Exacerbation severity is determined (GOLD 2018) as follows:

* mild: treated with short acting bronchodilators (SABDs) only,

* moderate: treated with SABDs plus antibiotics and/or oral corticosteroids,

* severe: patient required hospitalization or visits the emergency room.

Episodes of hospitalizationThroughout the study; 3 months

Episodes of hospitalization, distinguishing emergency department, intensive care, intermediate care and ward stays, will be recorded throughout the study .

The cumulative days alive and event-freeThroughout the study; 3 months

The cumulative days alive and event-free (free from hospitalization, exacerbation, ventilation, oxygen use, pneumonia or infection)

MedicationsThroughout the study; 3 months

Drug consumption episodes (including vaccines) will be recorded throughout the study and linked to COPD exacerbations, COPD maintenance therapy or corticosteroid-induced side effects as appropriate.

VAS scale for dyspnoea3 months

Patient reported, separate visual analogue scales (VAS) for coughing, dyspnoea (at rest), sputum production, sleep perturbation and anxiety.

VAS scales range from 0 (absence of symptoms) to 10 (strongest possible symptoms imaginable).

The COPD assessment test3 months

Scores range from 0-40 with higher scores indicative of greater COPD impact on health status.

The DIRECT questionnaire3 months

DIRECT: Disability related to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) tool The DIRECT questionnaire provides a score ranging between 0 and 34, with higher values indicating higher levels of disability.

Episodes of pneumoniaThroughout the study; 3 months

Beginning and end dates of episodes.

Episodes of mild exacerbation.Throughout the study; 3 months

Episodes of exacerbation will be recorded (date of start/finish for each episode) throughout the study.

Exacerbation severity is determined (GOLD 2018) as follows:

* mild: treated with short acting bronchodilators (SABDs) only,

* moderate: treated with SABDs plus antibiotics and/or oral corticosteroids,

* severe: patient required hospitalization or visits the emergency room.

Forced vital capacity (% predicted)3 months
Episodes of intensive careThroughout the study; 3 months
VAS scale for coughing3 months

Patient reported, separate visual analogue scales (VAS) for coughing, dyspnoea (at rest), sputum production, sleep perturbation and anxiety.

VAS scales range from 0 (absence of symptoms) to 10 (strongest possible symptoms imaginable).

VAS scale for anxiety3 months

Patient reported, separate visual analogue scales (VAS) for coughing, dyspnoea (at rest), sputum production, sleep perturbation and anxiety.

VAS scales range from 0 (absence of symptoms) to 10 (strongest possible symptoms imaginable).

Episodes of severe exacerbation.Throughout the study; 3 months

Episodes of exacerbation will be recorded (date of start/finish for each episode) throughout the study.

Exacerbation severity is determined (GOLD 2018) as follows:

* mild: treated with short acting bronchodilators (SABDs) only,

* moderate: treated with SABDs plus antibiotics and/or oral corticosteroids,

* severe: patient required hospitalization or visits the emergency room.

Forced expiratory volume in 1 second (litres)3 months
Forced expiratory volume in 1 second (% predicted)3 months
Forced vital capacity (litres)3 months
VAS scale for sputum production3 months

Patient reported, separate visual analogue scales (VAS) for coughing, dyspnoea (at rest), sputum production, sleep perturbation and anxiety.

VAS scales range from 0 (absence of symptoms) to 10 (strongest possible symptoms imaginable).

VAS scale for sleep perturbation3 months

Patient reported, separate visual analogue scales (VAS) for coughing, dyspnoea (at rest), sputum production, sleep perturbation and anxiety.

VAS scales range from 0 (absence of symptoms) to 10 (strongest possible symptoms imaginable).

The modified medical research council (mMRC) dyspnoea scale3 months

Scores range from 0 (none) to 4 (very severe).

The St George Respiratory Questionnaire3 months

Scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more limitations.

Six minute walking tests3 months
Oxygen needs (litres/min) during initial hospitalisationAt hospital discharge (expected maximum of 28 days)
Mode of pre-hospitalization living arrangementsBaseline (day 0)

At home, rehabilitation centre, assisted living centre, or other

Hospital discharge modalityAt hospital discharge (expected maximum of 28 days)

At home, rehabilitation centre, assisted living centre, or other

Episodes of emergency department useThroughout the study; 3 months
Mortality/survivalThroughout the study; 3 months
The Breathlessness, Cough and Sputum Scale3 months

Symptoms are evaluated on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from 0 to 4, with higher scores indicating more severe symptoms.

The Euroqol (EQ-5D-5L) questionnaire3 months

The descriptive system has five dimensions (mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, anxiety/depression), each described by five levels of intensity ("no problems", "slight problems", "moderate problems", "severe problems" and "extreme problems or complete inability"). This decision results in a 1-digit number that expresses the level selected for that dimension. The digits for the five dimensions can be combined into a 5-digit number that describes the patient's health state.

Trial Locations

Locations (21)

Clinique du Parc

🇫🇷

Castelnau-le-Lez, France

CHU Montpellier

🇫🇷

Montpellier, France

Hôpital Nord Franche-Comté

🇫🇷

Trévenans, France

APHP - Hôpital Cochin

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Centre hospitalier intercommunal de Créteil

🇫🇷

Créteil, France

CHU Brest - Hôpital Caval Blanche

🇫🇷

Brest, France

APHM - Hôpital Nord

🇫🇷

Marseille, France

CHU Nancy

🇫🇷

Nancy, France

CH Libourne

🇫🇷

Libourne, France

CHRU Lille

🇫🇷

Lille, France

CHU Reims

🇫🇷

Reims, France

APHP - Hopital Européen Georges Pompidou

🇫🇷

Paris, France

APHP - Hôpital Universitaire Pitié-Salpétrière

🇫🇷

Paris, France

CHU Nîmes

🇫🇷

Nîmes, France

Hospice Civils de Lyon

🇫🇷

Lyon, France

APHP - Hôpital BICHAT

🇫🇷

Paris, France

CH Roubaix

🇫🇷

Roubaix, France

Hôpital Larrey CHU Toulouse

🇫🇷

Toulouse, France

CHRU Strasbourg

🇫🇷

Strasbourg, France

CHU Amiens

🇫🇷

Amiens, France

CHU Bordeaux - Hôpital Haut Lévêque

🇫🇷

Pessac, France

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