Evaluating Solriamfetol in Patients Adherent to OSA Therapy: Paula K. Schweitzer, PhD

"We decided to use both patients that were adherent to treatment, as well as patients that were nonadherent to treatment because both types exist. There’s a clinical need for treatment in both situations.”

A recently published open-label extension trial (NCT02348632) showed that the magnitude of the wake-promoting effects of solriamfetol (Sunosi; Jazz Pharmaceuticals) treatment for up to 1 year is similar regardless of adherence to primary obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) therapy. Led by Paula K. Schweitzer, PhD, the study also found that the level of primary OSA therapy use remained unchanged over the duration of solriamfetol treatment, demonstrating that long-term treatment of excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) with solriamfetol does not affect the patients’ use of primary OSA therapy.

Schweitzer and colleagues used the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) as the main efficacy outcome in patients with OSA who completed prior solriamfetol studies. Patients in the open-label extension received solriamfetol 75, 150, or 300 mg/day for less than or equal to 52 weeks.

Schweitzer, director of research at St. Luke’s Sleep Medicine and Research Center, claims that nonadherence is common, with a relatively large population of those who don’t enjoy continuous positive airway pressure or have trouble sleeping with it. In an interview with NeurologyLive, Schweitzer discussed the motivation behind her study, and whether previous concerns played a role into her decision to conduct this research.