Zaleplon is indicated for the short-term treatment of insomnia. Zaleplon has been shown to decrease the time to sleep onset for up to 30 days in controlled clinical studies (see Clinical Trials under CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY ) . It has not been shown to increase total sleep time or decrease the number of awakenings. The clinical trials performed in support of efficacy ranged from a single night to 5 weeks in duration. The final formal assessments of sleep latency were performed at the end of treatment.
Contraindications
Zalepon is contraindicated in patients:
who have experienced complex sleep behaviors after taking zaleplon (see WARNINGS ).
with hypersensitivity to zaleplon or any excipients in the formulation (see PRECAUTIONS ).
Warnings and precautions
Complex Sleep Behaviors Complex sleep behaviors including sleep-walking, sleep-driving, and engaging in other activities while not fully awake may occur following the first or any subsequent use of zaleplon. Patients can be seriously injured or injure others during complex sleep behaviors. Such injuries may result in a fatal outcome. a. Other complex sleep behaviors (e.g., preparing and eating food, making phone calls, or having sex) have also been reported.
Patients usually do not remember these events. Post-marketing reports have shown that complex sleep behaviors may occur with zaleplon alone at recommended dosages, with or without the concomitant use of alcohol or other central nervous system (CNS) depressants. CNS-Depressant Effects and Next-Day Impairment Zaleplon, like other hypnotics, has CNS-depressant effects. Because of the rapid onset of action, zaleplon should only be ingested immediately prior to going to bed or after the patient has gone to bed and has experienced difficulty falling asleep.
Co-administration with other CNS depressants (e.g., benzodiazepines, opioids, tricyclic antidepressants, alcohol) increases the risk of CNS depression. Dosage adjustments of zaleplon and of other concomitant CNS depressants may be necessary when zaleplon is administered with such agents because of the potentially additive effects. The use of zaleplon with other sedative-hypnotics at bedtime or the middle of the night is not recommended (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION ).
The risk of next-day psychomotor impairment, including impaired driving, is increased if zaleplon is taken with less than a full night of sleep remaining (7 to 8 hours); if a higher than the recommended dose is taken; if co-administered with other CNS depressants or alcohol; or if co-administered with other drugs that increase the blood levels of zaleplon. Patients should be warned against driving and other activities requiring complete mental alertness if zaleplon is taken in these circumstances (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION and Clinical Trials under CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY ).
Vehicle drivers and machine operators should be warned that, as with other hypnotics, there may be a possible risk of adverse reactions including drowsiness, prolonged reaction time, dizziness, sleepiness, blurred/double vision, reduced alertness, and impaired driving the morning after therapy. In order to minimize this risk a full night of sleep (7-8 hours) is recommended. Because zaleplon can cause drowsiness and a decreased level of consciousness, patients, particularly the elderly, are at higher risk of falls.
Need to Evaluate for Co-morbid Diagnoses Because sleep disturbances may be the presenting manifestation of a physical and/or psychiatric disorder, symptomatic treatment of insomnia should be initiated only after a careful evaluation of the patient. The failure of insomnia to remit after 7 to 10 days of treatment may indicate the presence of a primary psychiatric and/or medical illness that should be evaluated. Worsening of insomnia or the emergence of new thinking or behavior abnormalities may be the consequence of an unrecognized psychiatric or physical disorder.
Such findings have emerged during the course of treatment with sedative/hypnotic drugs, including zaleplon. Because some of the important adverse effects of zaleplon appear to be dose-related, it is important to use the lowest possible effective dose, especially in the elderly (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION ). Severe Anaphylactic and Anaphylactoid Reactions Rare cases of angioedema involving the tongue, glottis or larynx have been reported in patients after taking the first or subsequent doses of sedative-hypnotics, including zaleplon.
Some patients have had additional symptoms such as dyspnea, throat closing, or nausea and vomiting that suggest anaphylaxis. Some patients have required medical therapy in the emergency department. If angioedema involves the tongue, glottis or larynx, airway obstruction may occur and be fatal. Patients who develop angioedema after treatment with zaleplon should not be rechallenged with the drug. Abnormal Thinking and Behavioral Changes A variety of abnormal thinking and behavior changes have been reported to occur in association with the use of sedative/hypnotics.
Some of these changes may be characterized by decreased inhibition (e.g., aggressiveness and extroversion that seem out of character), similar to effects produced by alcohol and other CNS depressants. Other reported behavioral changes have included bizarre behavior, agitation, hallucinations, and depersonalization. Amnesia and other neuropsychiatric symptoms may occur unpredictably. It can rarely be determined with certainty whether a particular instance of the abnormal behaviors listed above is drug induced, spontaneous in origin, or a result of an underlying psychiatric or physical disorder.
Nonetheless, the emergence of any new behavioral sign or symptom of concern requires careful and immediate evaluation. Withdrawal Effects Following rapid dose decrease or abrupt discontinuation of the use of sedative/hypnotics, there have been reports of signs and symptoms similar to those associated with withdrawal from other CNS-depressant drugs (see DRUG ABUSE AND DEPENDENCE ).
Interactions
Drug Interactions As with all drugs, the potential exists for interaction with other drugs by a variety of mechanisms. CNS-Active Drugs: Ethanol: Zaleplon 10 mg potentiated the CNS-impairing effects of ethanol 0.75 g/kg on balance testing and reaction time for 1 hour after ethanol administration and on the digit symbol substitution test (DSST), symbol copying test, and the variability component of the divided attention test for 2.5 hours after ethanol administration.
The potentiation resulted from a CNS pharmacodynamic interaction; zaleplon did not affect the pharmacokinetics of ethanol. Imipramine: Co-administration of single doses of zaleplon 20 mg and imipramine 75 mg produced additive effects on decreased alertness and impaired psychomotor performance for 2 to 4 hours after administration. The interaction was pharmacodynamic with no alteration of the pharmacokinetics of either drug.
Paroxetine: Co-administration of a single dose of zaleplon 20 mg and paroxetine 20 mg daily for 7 days did not produce any interaction on psychomotor performance. Additionally, paroxetine did not alter the pharmacokinetics of zaleplon, reflecting the absence of a role of CYP2D6 in zaleplon’s metabolism. Thioridazine: Co-administration of single doses of zaleplon 20 mg and thioridazine 50 mg produced additive effects on decreased alertness and impaired psychomotor performance for 2 to 4 hours after administration.
The interaction was pharmacodynamic with no alteration of the pharmacokinetics of either drug. Venlafaxine: Co-administration of a single dose of zaleplon 10 mg and multiple doses of venlafaxine ER (extended release) 150 mg did not result in any significant changes in the pharmacokinetics of either zaleplon or venlafaxine. In addition, there was no pharmacodynamic interaction as a result of co-administration of zaleplon and venlafaxine ER.
Promethazine: Co-administration of a single dose of zaleplon and promethazine (10 and 25 mg, respectively) resulted in a 15% decrease in maximal plasma concentrations of zaleplon, but no change in the area under the plasma concentration-time curve. However, the pharmacodynamics of co-administration of zaleplon and promethazine have not been evaluated. Caution should be exercised when these 2 agents are co-administered.
Drugs That Induce CYP3A4: Rifampin: CYP3A4 is ordinarily a minor metabolizing enzyme of zaleplon. Multiple-dose administration of the potent CYP3A4 inducer rifampin (600 mg every 24 hours, q24h, for 14 days), however, reduced zaleplon C max and AUC by approximately 80%. The co-administration of a potent CYP3A4 enzyme inducer, although not posing a safety concern, thus could lead to ineffectiveness of zaleplon. An alternative non-CYP3A4 substrate hypnotic agent may be considered in patients taking CYP3A4 inducers such as rifampin, phenytoin, carbamazepine and phenobarbital.
Drugs That Inhibit CYP3A4: CYP3A4 is a minor metabolic pathway for the elimination of zaleplon because the sum of desethylzaleplon (formed via CYP3A4 in vitro ) and its metabolites, 5-oxo-desethylzaleplon and 5-oxo-desethylzaleplon glucuronide, accounts for only 9% of the urinary recovery of a zaleplon dose. Co-administration of single, oral doses of zaleplon with erythromycin (10 mg and 800 mg, respectively), a strong, selective CYP3A4 inhibitor, produced a 34% increase in zaleplon's maximal plasma concentrations and a 20% increase in the area under the plasma concentration time curve.
The magnitude of interaction with multiple doses of erythromycin is unknown. Other strong selective CYP3A4 inhibitors such as ketoconazole can also be expected to increase the exposure of zaleplon. A routine dosage adjustment of zaleplon is not considered necessary. Drugs That Inhibit Aldehyde Oxidase: The aldehyde oxidase enzyme system is less well studied than the cytochrome P450 enzyme system. Diphenhydramine: Diphenhydramine is reported to be a weak inhibitor of aldehyde oxidase in rat liver, but its inhibitory effects in human liver are not known.
There is no pharmacokinetic interaction between zaleplon and diphenhydramine following the administration of a single dose (10 mg and 50 mg, respectively) of each drug. However, because both of these compounds have CNS effects, an additive pharmacodynamic effect is possible. Drugs That Inhibit Both Aldehyde Oxidase and CYP3A4: Cimetidine: Cimetidine inhibits both aldehyde oxidase (in vitro) and CYP3A4 (in vitro and in vivo), the primary and secondary enzymes, respectively, responsible for zaleplon metabolism.
Concomitant administration of zaleplon (10 mg) and cimetidine (800 mg) produced an 85% increase in the mean C max and AUC of zaleplon. An initial dose of 5 mg should be given to patients who are concomitantly being treated with cimetidine (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION ). Drugs Highly Bound to Plasma Protein: Zaleplon is not highly bound to plasma proteins (fraction bound 60%±15%); therefore, the disposition of zaleplon is not expected to be sensitive to alterations in protein binding.
In addition, administration of zaleplon to a patient taking another drug that is highly protein bound should not cause transient increase in free concentrations of the other drug. Drugs with a Narrow Therapeutic Index: Digoxin: Zaleplon (10 mg) did not affect the pharmacokinetic or pharmacodynamic profile of digoxin (0.375 mg q24h for 8 days). Warfarin : Multiple oral doses of zaleplon (20 mg q24h for 13 days) did not affect the pharmacokinetics of warfarin (R+)- or (S-)-enantiomers or the pharmacodynamics (prothrombin time) following a single 25 mg oral dose of warfarin.
Drugs That Alter Renal Excretion: Ibuprofen: Ibuprofen is known to affect renal function and, consequently, alter the renal excretion of other drugs. There was no apparent pharmacokinetic interaction between zaleplon and ibuprofen following single dose administration (10 mg and 600 mg, respectively) of each drug. This was expected because zaleplon is primarily metabolized and renal excretion of unchanged zaleplon accounts for less than 1% of the administered dose.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
Pregnancy In embryofetal development studies in rats and rabbits, oral administration of up to 100 mg/kg/day and 50 mg/kg/day, respectively, to pregnant animals throughout organogenesis produced no evidence of teratogenicity. These doses are equivalent to 49 (rat) and 48 (rabbit) times the maximum recommended human dose (MRHD) of 20 mg on a mg/m 2 basis. In rats, pre- and postnatal growth was reduced in the offspring of dams receiving 100 mg/kg/day.
This dose was also maternally toxic, as evidenced by clinical signs and decreased maternal body weight gain during gestation. The no-effect dose for rat offspring growth reduction was 10 mg/kg (a dose equivalent to 5 times the MRHD of 20 mg on a mg/m 2 basis). No adverse effects on embryofetal development were observed in rabbits at the doses examined. In a pre- and postnatal development study in rats, increased stillbirth and postnatal mortality, and decreased growth and physical development, were observed in the offspring of females treated with doses of 7 mg/kg/day or greater during the latter part of gestation and throughout lactation.
There was no evidence of maternal toxicity at this dose. The no-effect dose for offspring development was 1 mg/kg/day (a dose equivalent to 0.5 times the MRHD of 20 mg on a mg/m 2 basis). When the adverse effects on offspring viability and growth were examined in a cross-fostering study, they appeared to result from both in utero and lactational exposure to the drug. There are no studies of zaleplon in pregnant women; therefore, zaleplon is not recommended for use in women during pregnancy.
Adverse reactions
The premarketing development program for zaleplon included zaleplon exposures in patients and/or normal subjects from 2 different groups of studies: approximately 900 normal subjects in clinical pharmacology/pharmacokinetic studies; and approximately 2,900 exposures from patients in placebo-controlled clinical effectiveness studies, corresponding to approximately 450 patient exposure years. The conditions and duration of treatment with zaleplon varied greatly and included (in overlapping categories) open-label and double-blind phases of studies, inpatients and outpatients, and short-term or longer-term exposure.
Adverse reactions were assessed by collecting adverse events, results of physical examinations, vital signs, weights, laboratory analyses, and ECGs. Adverse events during exposure were obtained primarily by general inquiry and recorded by clinical investigators using terminology of their own choosing. Consequently, it is not possible to provide a meaningful estimate of the proportion of individuals experiencing adverse events without first grouping similar types of events into a smaller number of standardized event categories.
In the tables and tabulations that follow, COSTART terminology has been used to classify reported adverse events. The stated frequencies of adverse events represent the proportion of individuals who experienced, at least once, a treatment-emergent adverse event of the type listed. An event was considered treatment emergent if it occurred for the first time or worsened while receiving therapy following baseline evaluation.
Adverse Findings Observed in Short-Term, Placebo-Controlled Trials Adverse Events Associated With Discontinuation of Treatment: In premarketing placebo-controlled, parallel-group phase 2 and phase 3 clinical trials, 3.1% of 744 patients who received placebo and 3.7% of 2,149 patients who received zaleplon discontinued treatment because of an adverse clinical event. This difference was not statistically significant. No event that resulted in discontinuation occurred at a rate of ≥1%.
Adverse Events Occurring at an Incidence of 1% or More Among Zaleplon 20 mg-Treated Patients: Table 1 enumerates the incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events for a pool of three 28-night and one 35-night placebo-controlled studies of zaleplon at doses of 5 mg or 10 mg and 20 mg. The table includes only those events that occurred in 1% or more of patients treated with zaleplon 20 mg and that had a higher incidence in patients treated with zaleplon 20 mg than in placebo-treated patients.
The prescriber should be aware that these figures cannot be used to predict the incidence of adverse events in the course of usual medical practice where patient characteristics and other factors differ from those which prevailed in the clinical trials. Similarly, the cited frequencies cannot be compared with figures obtained from other clinical investigations involving different treatments, uses, and investigators. The cited figures, however, do provide the prescribing physician with some basis for estimating the relative contribution of drug and non-drug factors to the adverse event incidence rate in the population studied.
Table 1: Incidence (%) of Treatment-Emergent Adverse Events in Long-Term (28 and 35 Nights) Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trials of Zaleplon Events for which the incidence for zaleplon 20 mg-treated patients was at least 1% and greater than the incidence among placebo-treated patients. Incidence greater than 1% has been rounded to the nearest whole number. Body System Preferred Term Placebo (n=344) Zaleplon 5 mg or 10 mg (n=569) Zaleplon 20 mg (n=297) Body as a Whole Abdominal Pain 3 6 6 Asthenia 5 5 7 Headache 35 30 42 Malaise <1 <1 2 Photosensitivity Reaction <1 <1 1 Digestive System Anorexia <1 <1 2 Colitis 0 0 1 Nausea 7 6 8 Metabolic and Nutritional Peripheral Edema <1 <1 1 Nervous System Amnesia 1 2 4 Confusion <1 <1 1 Depersonalization <1 <1 2 Dizziness 7 7 9 Hallucinations <1 <1 1 Hypertonia <1 1 1 Hypesthesia <1 <1 2 Paresthesia 1 3 3 Somnolence 4 5 6 Tremor 1 2 2 Vertigo <1 <1 1 Respiratory System Epistaxis <1 <1 1 Special Senses Abnormal Vision <1 <1 2 Ear Pain 0 <1 1 Eye Pain 2 4 3 Hyperacusis <1 1 2 Parosmia <1 <1 2 Urogenital System Dysmenorrhea 2 3 4 Other Adverse Events Observed During the Premarketing Evaluation of Zaleplon Listed below are COSTART terms that reflect treatment-emergent adverse events as defined in the introduction to the ADVERSE REACTIONS section.
These events were reported by patients treated with zaleplon at doses in a range of 5 mg/day to 20 mg/day during premarketing phase 2 and phase 3 clinical trials throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe including approximately 2,900 patients. All reported events are included except those already listed in Table 1 or elsewhere in labeling, those events for which a drug cause was remote, and those event terms that were so general as to be uninformative.
It is important to emphasize that although the events reported occurred during treatment with zaleplon, they were not necessarily caused by it. Events are further categorized by body system and listed in order of decreasing frequency according to the following definitions: frequent adverse events are those occurring on one or more occasions in at least 1/100 patients; infrequent adverse events are those occurring in less than 1/100 patients but at least 1/1,000 patients; rare events are those occurring in fewer than 1/1,000 patients.
Prognia shows this product information for reference and learning. It is not treatment advice and can lag behind the official text. Always check the current product information and local protocols before prescribing.
