Emmaus Life Sciences announced that the Food and Drug Administration has approved enhanced labeling for Endari (prescription-grade L-glutamine oral powder) based on additional pharmacokinetic data from post-marketing studies. The updated label provides healthcare providers with more comprehensive prescribing information for this sickle cell disease treatment.
Enhanced Prescribing Information
The FDA-approved label changes incorporate three key pharmacokinetic findings that improve clinical guidance. The updated information confirms dosing by body weight, demonstrates no unwanted accumulation through twice-daily dosing, and establishes that Endari can be administered with or without food. These enhancements provide greater flexibility and precision in clinical practice for healthcare providers managing sickle cell disease patients.
Clinical Profile and Safety Data
Endari is indicated to reduce acute complications of sickle cell disease in adult and pediatric patients aged five years and older. Clinical studies identified the most common adverse reactions occurring in more than 10 percent of patients as constipation, nausea, headache, abdominal pain, cough, pain in extremities, back pain, and chest pain.
Treatment discontinuation occurred in isolated cases, with one instance each of hypersplenism, abdominal pain, dyspepsia, burning sensation, and hot flash. The safety and efficacy of Endari in pediatric patients with sickle cell disease younger than five years of age has not been established.
Disease Burden and Patient Population
Sickle cell disease affects approximately 100,000 people in the United States and millions more globally. The condition is not limited to those of African descent, with the sickle gene found in every ethnic group. In the United States, an estimated 1-in-365 African Americans and 1-in-16,300 Hispanic Americans are born with sickle cell disease.
The genetic mutation responsible for sickle cell disease causes red blood cells to distort into a sickle shape, reducing their oxygen transport capacity. These sickled cells break down rapidly, become sticky, and tend to clump together, causing blockages in blood vessels. This results in reduced blood flow to organs, leading to incapacitating pain, tissue and organ damage, and early death.
Company Background
Emmaus Life Sciences is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing, marketing, and selling innovative treatments and therapies, including those for rare and orphan diseases. The company positions itself as a leader in sickle cell disease treatment through its development and commercialization of Endari.
