The following potentially serious adverse reactions are described elsewhere in the labeling: Hypersensitivity [see Contraindications (4.3)] Endophthalmitis and Retinal Detachment [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1)] Retinal Vasculitis and/or Retinal Vascular Occlusion [see Warnings and Precautions (5.2)] Increase in Intraocular Pressure [see Warnings and Precautions (5.3)] Thromboembolic Events [see Warnings and Precautions (5.4)] The most common adverse reactions reported in patients receiving BEOVU are vision blurred, cataract, conjunctival hemorrhage, eye pain, and vitreous floaters ( 6.1 ).
To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation at 1-888-669-6682 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch .
6.1Clinical Trials Experience
Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in one clinical trial of a drug cannot be directly compared with rates in the clinical trials of the same or another drug and may not reflect the rates observed in practice. A total of 1,646 patients treated with brolucizumab constituted the safety population in four Phase 3 studies. Among these, 1,098 patients were treated with the recommended dose of 6 mg.
A total of 1,088 patients treated with brolucizumab, constituted the safety population in the two controlled neovascular AMD Phase 3 studies (HAWK and HARRIER) with a cumulative 96-week exposure to BEOVU, and 730 patients treated with the recommended dose of 6 mg [see Clinical Studies (14.1)] . A total of 558 patients treated with brolucizumab constituted the safety population in the two controlled DME Phase 3 studies (KESTREL and KITE) from baseline to week 52, including 368 patients treated with the recommended dose of 6 mg [see Clinical Studies (14.2)] .
Table 1: Common Adverse Reactions (≥ 1%) in the AMD and DME Clinical Trials a Including vision blurred, visual acuity reduced, visual acuity reduced transiently, and visual impairment. b Including anterior chamber cell, anterior chamber flare, anterior chamber inflammation, chorioretinitis, eye inflammation, iridocyclitis, iritis, retinal vasculitis, retinal vascular occlusion, uveitis, vitreous haze, vitritis. c Including urticaria, rash, pruritus, erythema. d Including blindness, blindness transient, amaurosis, and amaurosis fugax.
BEOVU Active Control (aflibercept) Adverse Drug Reactions AMD (N = 730) DME (N = 368) AMD (N = 729) DME (N = 368) Vision blurred a 10% 2% 11% 4% Cataract 7% 4% 11% 5% Conjunctival hemorrhage 6% 6% 7% 7% Vitreous floaters 5% 3% 3% 2% Eye pain 5% 3% 6% 2% Intraocular inflammation b 4% 3% 1% 1% Intraocular pressure increased 4% 2% 5% 1% Retinal hemorrhage 4% 3% 1% Vitreous detachment 4% 2% 3% 1% Conjunctivitis 3% 2% 2% < 1% Retinal pigment epithelial tear 3% 1% Corneal abrasion 2% 1% 2% 2% Hypersensitivity c 2% 1% 1% 1% Punctate keratitis 1% 1% 2% Retinal tear 1% < 1% 1% < 1% Endophthalmitis 1% < 1% < 1% 1% Blindness d 1% < 1% < 1% Retinal artery occlusion 1% 1% < 1% < 1% Retinal detachment 1% < 1% 1% Conjunctival hyperemia 1% < 1% 1% 1% Lacrimation increased 1% < 1% 1% < 1% Abnormal sensation in eye 1% < 1% 2% 1% Detachment of retinal pigment epithelium 1% < 1% Vitreous hemorrhage < 1% 1% < 1% 1% In clinical trials, scleritis and episcleritis were reported (incidence < 1%).
In a clinical study (MERLIN), patients with nAMD who received BEOVU every 4-week maintenance dosing experienced a higher incidence of intraocular inflammation (including retinal vasculitis) and retinal vascular occlusion than patients who received BEOVU every 8 or 12-week maintenance dosing in the clinical studies (HAWK and HARRIER). The interval between two BEOVU doses during maintenance treatment should not be less than 8 weeks.
6.2 Immunogenicity As with all therapeutic proteins, there is a potential for an immune response in patients treated with BEOVU. The immunogenicity of BEOVU was evaluated in serum samples. The immunogenicity data reflect the percentage of patients whose test results were considered positive for antibodies to BEOVU in immunoassays. The detection of an immune response is highly dependent on the sensitivity and specificity of the assays used, sample handling, timing of sample collection, concomitant medications, and underlying disease.
For these reasons, comparison of the incidence of antibodies to BEOVU with the incidence of antibodies to other products may be misleading. Anti-brolucizumab antibodies were detected in the pre-treatment sample of 36% to 64% of treated naive patients. After initiation of dosing, anti-brolucizumab antibodies were detected in at least one serum sample in 53% to 76% of patients treated with BEOVU. Intraocular inflammation was observed in 6% of patients with anti-brolucizumab antibodies detected during dosing with BEOVU in clinical trials.
Retinal vasculitis and/or retinal vascular occlusion, typically in the presence of intraocular inflammation, are immune-mediated adverse events related to exposure to BEOVU. This treatment-emergent antibody response may develop following the first intravitreal injection. Anti-brolucizumab antibodies were not associated with an impact on clinical efficacy.
