MedPath

Zoster Eye Disease Study

Phase 4
Completed
Conditions
Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus
Interventions
Drug: Masked Placebo
Registration Number
NCT03134196
Lead Sponsor
NYU Langone Health
Brief Summary

This is a multi-center, randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled clinical trial of suppressive valacyclovir for one year in immunocompetent study participants with an episode of dendriform epithelial keratitis, stromal keratitis, endothelial keratitis, and/or iritis due to Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus (HZO) in the year prior to enrollment.

Detailed Description

The objective of the Zoster Eye Disease Study (ZEDS) is to determine whether prolonged suppressive oral antiviral treatment with valacyclovir reduces complications of Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus (HZO), thereby improving clinical outcomes in this common and potentially vision- and life-threatening disease. There are 1,000,000 new cases of Herpes Zoster (HZ) per year in the USA, with 10-20% being HZO.

Specific Aims

Primary Aim: The primary aim of this double-masked, placebo controlled multicenter randomized clinical trial will test the hypothesis that suppressive antiviral treatment for 12 months with oral valacyclovir 1000 mg daily reduces the rate of new or worsening dendriform epithelial keratitis, stromal keratitis, endothelial keratitis or iritis compared to placebo, at 12 months as the primary endpoint, and at 18 months including 6 months of follow-up after treatment, as a secondary endpoint, in patients with HZO who have had an episode of one of these disease manifestations during the year prior to enrollment.

Secondary Aim: The second aim is to test the hypothesis that suppressive treatment for 12 months with oral valacyclovir 1000 mg daily reduces the severity and duration of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), compared to placebo, at 12 months and at 18 months as secondary endpoints, in similar patients with HZO. PHN is a debilitating chronic pain syndrome that negatively impacts quality of life, especially in elderly patients.

The study will enroll immunocompetent patients age 18 years and older who have HZO diagnosed at variable times in the past, with these types of active anterior segment ocular segment disease within the past year. Eligible patients will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to long-term suppressive treatment with oral valacyclovir 1000 mg daily or placebo for 12 months, plus usual ophthalmic care, and followed every 3 months for a total of 18 months, to determine outcomes of new or worsening dendriform epithelial keratitis, stromal keratitis, endothelial keratitis or iritis and/or severity and duration of PHN during 12 months of treatment and for 6 months following treatment discontinuation. The results with regard to PHN may be applicable to HZ in other locations. If suppressive valacyclovir treatment is determined to be effective, the potentially devastating disease burden of HZO and HZ may be reduced for patients, as well as the annual costs to society, estimated in the USA to be one billion dollars.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
527
Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

Not provided

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
PlaceboMasked PlaceboEncapsulated masked placebo
Masked Oral Valacyclovir 1000 mg dailyMasked Oral ValacyclovirValacyclovir, 500 mg, oral pill, two 500mg pills daily
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Number of Participants With the First Occurrence of New or Worsening Stromal Keratitis Without Ulceration (SK), Endothelial Keratitis (EK), Iritis (IR), Dendriform Epithelial Keratitis (DEK), or Stromal Keratitis With Ulceration (SKU)Month 12

The number of participants with the first confirmed endpoint (new or worsening SK, EK, IR, DEK or SKU associated with pre-specified definitions of these disease manifestations and associated treatment requirements within 12 months in study participants assigned to valacyclovir compared to placebo. Diagnostic criteria were defined using the classification for SK, EK, SKU, and DEK caused by Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) and standardization of uveitis nomenclature (SUN) for IR. A substantial increase in topical steroid treatment, defined as starting, shifting from a lower to higher potency steroid, or doubling frequency of steroid at one visit (new) or gradually within 3 months (worsening) was required for SK, EK, IR, and SKU.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Number of Participants With Persistent Treatment Benefit at 18 Months, 6 Months After Cessation of TreatmentMonth 18 (6 months post treatment)

A secondary endpoint, at 18 months, assessed whether the treatment effect persisted 6 months after treatment. Diagnostic criteria were defined using the classification for SK, EK, SKU, and DEK caused by HSV and standardization of uveitis nomenclature (SUN) for IR. A substantial increase in topical steroid treatment, defined as starting, shifting from a lower to higher potency steroid, or doubling frequency of steroid at one visit (new) or gradually within 3 months (worsening) was required for SK, EK, IR, and SKU.

Number of Postherpetic Neuralgia (PHN) EpisodesMonth 18 (6 months post treatment)

PHN was defined by a ZBPI score of ≥ 3 (the level at which pain interferes with normal activities), persisting, occurring, or reoccurring 3 or more months after the onset of HZO

Average Duration of Postherpetic Neuralgia (PHN) PainMonth 30 (18 months post treatment)

The duration of pain after zoster is obtained at every visit when they reported pain. Outcome measure was obtained using the Zoster Brief Pain Inventory (ZBPI) score of worst pain in last 24 hours of 3/10 (the level at which pain interferes with normal activities) or more occurring 3 or more months after HZO onset was used to determine the prevalence, severity and duration of PHN.

Trial Locations

Locations (77)

Eye Consultants of Atlanta, PC

🇺🇸

Atlanta, Georgia, United States

The Krieger Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Baltimore, Maryland, United States

University of Illinois

🇺🇸

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary

🇺🇸

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Boston Medical Center

🇺🇸

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Alkek Eye Center - Baylor College of Medicine

🇺🇸

Houston, Texas, United States

Mayo Clinic - Arizona

🇺🇸

Scottsdale, Arizona, United States

Scripps Clinic

🇺🇸

La Jolla, California, United States

Eye Health Services

🇺🇸

Weymouth, Massachusetts, United States

Shreveport Eye Clinic

🇺🇸

Shreveport, Louisiana, United States

Verdier Eye Center

🇺🇸

Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States

University of Maryland

🇺🇸

Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Indiana University - Glick Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

Cincinnati Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

University of Miami - Bascom Palmer Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Miami, Florida, United States

Delray Eye Associates, PA

🇺🇸

Delray Beach, Florida, United States

Case Western Reserve University

🇺🇸

Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Tufts Medical Center

🇺🇸

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Crossroads Eye Physician

🇺🇸

Owings Mills, Maryland, United States

Albany Stratton VA Medical Center

🇺🇸

Albany, New York, United States

NorthShore University Health System

🇺🇸

Glenview, Illinois, United States

Lahey Medical Center

🇺🇸

Peabody, Massachusetts, United States

Northwest Eye Clinic

🇺🇸

Golden Valley, Minnesota, United States

Jennifer Burdick

🇺🇸

Minnetonka, Minnesota, United States

New York Eye and Ear Infirmary

🇺🇸

New York, New York, United States

Finger Lakes Ophthalmology /The Eye Care Center

🇺🇸

Canandaigua, New York, United States

Stony Brook Ophthalmology

🇺🇸

East Setauket, New York, United States

Cornea Associates of Texas

🇺🇸

Dallas, Texas, United States

University of Pennsylvania

🇺🇸

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Geisinger Eye Clinic

🇺🇸

Danville, Pennsylvania, United States

University of Texas Southwestern

🇺🇸

Dallas, Texas, United States

Prism Eye Institute

🇨🇦

Oakville, Ontario, Canada

Virginia Mason Medical Center

🇺🇸

Seattle, Washington, United States

NY Eye Surgeons

🇺🇸

Seattle, Washington, United States

Kingston Health Sciences Centre-HDH Site and Queen's University

🇨🇦

Kingston, Ontario, Canada

Clinique Axe Visuel

🇨🇦

Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada

University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

🇺🇸

Little Rock, Arkansas, United States

Loma Linda University Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Loma Linda, California, United States

Pacific Eye Surgeons, Inc.

🇺🇸

San Luis Obispo, California, United States

Byers Eye Institute at Stanford University

🇺🇸

Palo Alto, California, United States

Jules Stein Eye Clinic - UCLA

🇺🇸

Los Angeles, California, United States

Colorado Cornea Consultants P.C.

🇺🇸

Littleton, Colorado, United States

Medstar Georgetown University Hospital

🇺🇸

Washington, District of Columbia, United States

Florida Eye Specialists

🇺🇸

Jacksonville, Florida, United States

EyeCare MD of NJ

🇺🇸

Morristown, New Jersey, United States

Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center

🇺🇸

Lebanon, New Hampshire, United States

Northwell Health

🇺🇸

Great Neck, New York, United States

Washington University Opthalmology

🇺🇸

Saint Louis, Missouri, United States

Weill Cornell Ophthalmology

🇺🇸

New York, New York, United States

NYU Langone Health

🇺🇸

New York, New York, United States

University of Tennessee - Hamilton Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Memphis, Tennessee, United States

Vantage Eye Care Center, LLC

🇺🇸

Bala-Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, United States

Cornea Consultants of Texas

🇺🇸

Fort Worth, Texas, United States

Corneal Associates at Wills Eye Hospital

🇺🇸

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre/McGill Academic Eye Centre

🇨🇦

Montréal, Quebec, Canada

Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM)

🇨🇦

Montréal, Quebec, Canada

Vanderbilt Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Nashville, Tennessee, United States

Virginia Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Richmond, Virginia, United States

University of British Columbia/Vancouver General Hospital Eye Care Centre

🇨🇦

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

University of Florida

🇺🇸

Gainesville, Florida, United States

LSU Health Science Center

🇺🇸

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Wilmer Eye Institute John Hopkins

🇺🇸

Bethesda, Maryland, United States

Duke University

🇺🇸

Durham, North Carolina, United States

University of Alabama at Birmingham

🇺🇸

Birmingham, Alabama, United States

UCSF- Francis I. Proctor Foundation

🇺🇸

San Francisco, California, United States

University of Colorado

🇺🇸

Aurora, Colorado, United States

University of Michigan

🇺🇸

Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States

Mayo Clinic

🇺🇸

Rochester, Minnesota, United States

Cornea and Cataract Consultants of Nashville

🇺🇸

Nashville, Tennessee, United States

R and R Eye Research, LLC

🇺🇸

San Antonio, Texas, United States

University of Utah - Moran Eye Center

🇺🇸

Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

Devers Eye Institute

🇺🇸

Portland, Oregon, United States

Casey Eye Institute - Oregon Health and Science University

🇺🇸

Portland, Oregon, United States

University of Kentucky

🇺🇸

Lexington, Kentucky, United States

University of Wisconsin - Madison

🇺🇸

Madison, Wisconsin, United States

Royal Alexandra Hospital

🇨🇦

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

University of Kansas Medical Center

🇺🇸

Prairie Village, Kansas, United States

© Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved by MedPath