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Browsing by Subject "tehokkuus"

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  • Peltoniemi, Jonne (2020)
    Erenumab (Aimovig®) is a first-in-class calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) inhibitor approved for the preventive treatment of migraine by the FDA in May 2018 and by European Commission (EC) in July 2018. It is a human monoclonal antibody (mAb) binding to the CGRP receptor, antagonizing the effect of CGRP. The marketing authorization of Aimovig® was based on two phase II and two phase III clinical trials. In all trials, erenumab with doses 70 mg/mL and 140 mg/mL was found to have a significantly superior effect compared to placebo, with a similar safety profile between all groups. These conclusions are mainly in line with studies conducted post marketing authorization. However, questions about the optimal dose, and the frequency and types of adverse events in larger patient populations remain to be studied. A European Public Assessment Report (EPAR) and Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC) are required by the European Commission for each human medicine with a marketing authorization within the European Union. The SmPC is produced by the applicant and it should contain all relevant information of the medicinal product as distilled during the assessment process. The SmPC can thus be viewed as a kind of summarized version of the EPAR. The aim of this study was to investigate the post-marketing efficacy and safety information of erenumab from three perspectives: 1) the EPAR was compared with recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses assessing the efficacy and safety of erenumab, 2) all existing literature on the efficacy and safety of erenumab on different subgroups of migraine patients was assessed and summarized, and 3) the efficacy and safety information of the EPAR was compared to those of the SmPC, to resolve whether important information is missing. This review found several points regarding the efficacy and safety of erenumab. First, the status of erenumab was further established as a safe and effective treatment for the prevention of migraine. Second, meta-analyses (n=3) with more extensive cohorts compared to those of the EPAR and SmPC, present a further case for the superiority of the 140 mg dose compared to the 70 mg dose. The difference in dose effect is addressed in the EPAR but its assessment may be based on limited information. Third, different subgroups seem to respond differently to erenumab treatment. This aspect should be further investigated by head-to-head studies. Lastly, the safety information of the SmPC seems insufficient due to lack of mention of upper respiratory infections. This adverse event was among the most common in all of the four clinical trials and has since been observed in a real-world study. Based on these findings, neither the EPAR nor the SmPC of erenumab seem to be fully up to date and information related to the dose and upper respiratory infections as a risk should be reconsidered.
  • Hemminki, Nelli (2024)
    Tablets are solid medicinal products that are produced by compressing tablet mass in a tablet press. The reproducible and reliable functionality of the manufacturing process, facilities and equipment used in the manufacturing process of medicinal products must be validated. There must be a marketing authorisation for the sale of medicinal products, and pharmaceutical companies must comply with current legislation, Good Manufacturing Practices, and other binding guidelines. After marketing authorisation, certain changes, such as significant changes related to the manufacturing process or raw materials, must be notified to the competent authority by means of a variation application. Depending on the extent of the change, a revalidation and/or a regulatory approval before implementing the change may be required, which makes manufacturing process modification slow, expensive, and laborious. However, the pressure to enhance pharmaceutical manufacturing processes and reduce costs is prevailing. In this study, Lean Six Sigma methods were applied to enhance the manufacturing process of a tablet product. The study was divided into two parts. In the first part of the study, the objective was to investigate the manufacturing process of a tablet product X and to identify improvement actions that would make the manufacturing process of the tablet product X more efficient by achieving material and time savings. In addition, improvement actions were prioritized based on the benefits achieved by the improvement actions and the difficulty of implementation. The second part of the study was based on the improvement action selected from the first part of the study. The objective of the second part of the study was to investigate the factors influencing the amount of mass loss during tableting and how the amount of mass loss can be influenced. In this study, mass loss during tableting referred to the dusty mass inside the tablet press during tableting, which is removed from the tablet press to the equipment dedusting system. The purpose of the practical experiment conducted in the tablet production, which was part of the second part of the study, was to investigate how the magnitude of the exhaust airflow and fan power of the equipment dedusting system affects the amount of mass loss generated during tableting. Based on the experiment, adjusting the power of the equipment dedusting system can affect the amount of mass loss generated during tableting. However, further studies are needed to ensure that no dusty mass remains in the piping of the dedusting system or in tablet press at low exhaust airflow and fan power values during tableting. If the results are applied to other tablet products, the effect of a different formulation on powder dusting should be considered. Adequate dedusting during tableting is important so that the dusty mass inside the tablet press is removed as intended, facilitating the cleaning of the tablet press after tableting and reducing the risk of cross-contamination and exposure of workers to dust. The conclusion of this study is that Lean Six Sigma methods can be used more extensively to enhance the manufacturing processes of both tablet products and other pharmaceutical dosage forms and to reduce loss generated during the manufacturing process without revalidation or changes to a valid marketing authorisation.