Title

An Efficacy Study of Vagitocin in Postmenopausal Women With Symptoms of Vaginal Atrophy
A Phase 2b, Double-blind, Randomized, Parallel, Placebo-Controlled, Multiple-Dose Study to Evaluate the 12-week Efficacy of Vagitocin in Postmenopausal Women With Symptoms of Vaginal Atrophy
  • Phase

    Phase 2
  • Study Type

    Interventional
  • Status

    Completed No Results Posted
  • Intervention/Treatment

    oxytocin ...
  • Study Participants

    227
Up to 50% of postmenopausal women frequently suffer from atrophic vaginitis or vaginal atrophy with symptoms including vaginal dryness, irritation, burning, itching or discomfort. Vaginal atrophy is a consequence of the lining tissue of the vagina becoming thinner, drier, and less elastic due to lack of estrogen. In addition, vaginal atrophy is associated with an increased pH, which creates an environment more susceptible to infections.

Menopausal hormone therapy is a common treatment for vaginal atrophy. However, menopausal hormone therapy has been shown to coincide with an increased incidence of breast cancer, heart attack and stroke. Some women experience adverse reactions such as uterine bleeding, perineal pain, and breast pain with menopausal hormone therapy. Many women are also reluctant to initiate estrogen treatment, due to a general negative view of menopausal hormone therapy in the society. There are also many contraindicated conditions like undiagnosed vaginal bleeding, thromboembolic disease, breast cancer, other estrogen-sensitive cancers, or liver disease. Women suffering from vaginal atrophy and presenting with these conditions have extremely limited options for effective therapy.

Oxytocin is a peptide hormone, normally released into the circulation via the pituitary. Oxytocin has been shown in vitro to exert positive effects on the proliferation of human vaginal mucosal cells from postmenopausal women. Local application of oxytocin, in the form of a vaginal gel, Vagitocin, has been investigated in previous studies on postmenopausal women, as a new effective and safe option for the treatment of vaginal atrophy. Vagitocin appeared to reverse the manifestation of vaginal atrophy by stimulating vaginal mucosal growth, reducing symptoms of vaginal atrophy and increasing the patients' wellbeing and quality of life. Overall, treatment with Vagitocin was safe and well tolerated by the subjects in the studies.

In this study, the clinical efficacy of Vagitocin as a potential treatment for postmenopausal women suffering from moderate to severe symptoms of vaginal atrophy, vaginal irritation/itching and vaginal discomfort and/or pain associated with sexual activity will be explored. In addition, the dose relationship and lowest effective dose of Vagitocin will be investigated.
Study Started
Oct 31
2014
Primary Completion
Jul 31
2015
Study Completion
Jul 31
2015
Last Update
Oct 21
2015
Estimate

Drug Oxytocin

  • Other names: Vagitocin

Drug Placebo

Oxytocin 400 IU Experimental

Oxytocin 400 IU vaginal gel (1 x 1mL/400 IU oxytocin daily for 12 weeks)

Oxytocin 200 IU Experimental

Oxytocin 200 IU vaginal gel (1 x 1mL/200 IU oxytocin daily for 12 weeks)

Placebo Placebo Comparator

Placebo vaginal gel (1 x 1mL daily for 12 weeks)

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

To participate in the study, a subject must:

Be a female subject between the ages of 40 and 65 years at the time of randomization, who is willing to participate in the study as indicated by signing the informed consent
Be a postmenopausal woman with at least 24 months of spontaneous amenorrhea or a woman, who has had surgical bilateral oophorectomy with or without hysterectomy at least 6 weeks ago
Have ≤ 5% superficial cells in vaginal smear cytology at screening
Have a vaginal pH > 5.0 at screening
Have a level of estradiol ≤ 30 pg/mL and a level of Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) > 40 milli International Units (mIU)/ml at screening
Have one moderate to severe vaginal atrophy symptom (vaginal irritation and itching, dyspareunia, vaginal dryness, dysuria or presence of vaginal bleeding associated with sexual activity) that has been identified by the subject as being the most bothersome to her
Have a Body Mass Index (BMI) ≤32 kg/m2
Be judged by the Principal Investigator or Sub-investigator as being in otherwise good health based on a pre-study medical evaluation performed within 35 days prior to the initial dose of study medication
Have endometrial thickness of < 4 mm as determined by vaginal ultrasonography, in women with an intact uterus
Be willing to abstain from sexual activity and the use of vaginal douching within 24 hours prior to vaginal pH measurements at screening and at Visits 2 and 3

Exclusion Criteria:

To participate in the study, a subject must not:

Be currently hospitalized
Have a history of ongoing cardiovascular, hepatic, renal, pulmonary, hematologic, gastrointestinal, endocrine, immunologic, dermatologic, neurologic, psychological, or musculoskeletal disease or disorder that is clinically significant in the opinion of the Principal Investigator or Sub-Investigator
Have had or have any known or suspected tumor disease that is clinically significant in the opinion of the Principal Investigator or Sub-Investigator
Have a history of endometrial hyperplasia or uterine/endometrial, breast or ovarian cancer
Have a history of undiagnosed vaginal bleeding
Have an ongoing urogenital infection at randomization visit
Any contraindication to oxytocin therapy and allergy to the use of oxytocin and any components of the investigational drugs
Have a history of drug and/or alcohol abuse within one year of start of study
Have used any prescription or Over The Counter (OTC) medications including phytoestrogens, herbal medicinal products or hormonal intra-uterine device with known estrogenic effects within 12 weeks prior to screening procedures
Have used any type of vaginal lubricants and moisturizers within 24 hours prior to screening procedures
Have used estrogen alone or estrogen/progestin for any of the time periods specified in the protocol
Have any reason, which in the opinion of the Principal Investigator or Sub-Investigator would prevent the subject from safely participating in the study or complying with protocol requirements
Have participated in another clinical trial within 90 days prior to screening, have received an investigational drug within the three months prior to the initial dose of study medication, or be likely to participate in a clinical trial or receive another investigational medication during the study
Have contraindication to any planned study procedure
No Results Posted