Orgalutran
Active Substance: ganirelix
Common Name: ganirelix
ATC Code: H01CC01
Marketing Authorisation Holder: Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited
Active Substance: ganirelix
Status: Authorised
Authorisation Date: 2000-05-17
Therapeutic Area: Reproductive Techniques, Assisted Ovulation
Induction
Pharmacotherapeutic Group: Pituitary and hypothalamic hormones and
analogues
Therapeutic Indication
The prevention of premature
luteinising-hormone surges in women undergoing controlled ovarian
hyperstimulation for assisted reproduction techniques.
In clinical studies, Orgalutran was used with
recombinant human follicle-stimulating hormone or corifollitropin alfa, the
sustained follicle stimulant.
What is Orgalutran?
Orgalutran is a solution for injection in a
prefilled syringe. Each syringe contains 0.25 mg of the active substance,
ganirelix.
What is Orgalutran used for?
Orgalutran is used to prevent premature ovulation
(early release of eggs from the ovary) in women having fertility treatment and
who are having ovarian stimulation (stimulation of the ovaries so that they
produce more eggs). In premature ovulation, the ovaries release eggs that may
be immature and not suitable for use in techniques such as in-vitro
fertilisation.
The medicine can only be obtained with a
prescription.
How is Orgalutran used?
Treatment with Orgalutran should be carried out by
a doctor who has experience in this type of fertility treatment.
Orgalutran is given as a single 0.25-mg injection
under the skin once a day. Treatment should start on day 5 or 6 after the start
of ovarian stimulation with follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) or
corifollitropin alfa (a modified FSH). When treatment should start depends on
how well the ovaries are responding to stimulation. Treatment with Orgalutran
should be continued up to the day that there are enough large follicles (small
sacs in the ovary that hold the eggs).
Orgalutran is preferably given into the upper leg.
The patient or her partner may give the injections themselves, if they have
been trained and have access to expert advice. For further information on how
to use Orgalutran, see the package leaflet.
How does Orgalutran work?
The active substance in Orgalutran, ganirelix,
blocks the receptors for a natural hormone called gonadotrophin-releasing
hormone (GnRH). GnRH controls the secretion of another hormone called
luteinising hormone (LH), which causes ovulation (the release of eggs during
the menstrual cycle). During fertility treatment, ovarian stimulation is
normally used to make the ovaries produce more than one egg. A few days later,
a hormone called human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) is given to trigger
ovulation, and the eggs are then harvested. By blocking the effect of GnRH,
Orgalutran stops the production of LH, and therefore prevents premature
ovulation.
How has Orgalutran been studied?
The ability of Orgalutran to prevent premature
ovulation has been studied in three main studies involving 1,335 women.
Orgalutran was compared with buserelin, leuprorelin, and triptorelin (GnRH
agonists: another group of medicines used to prevent premature ovulation, which
work by stimulating the receptor for GnRH to such an extent that the body stops
making LH). The main measures of effectiveness were the number of eggs that
could be harvested and the number of women who became pregnant.
What benefit has Orgalutran shown
during the studies?
After treatment with Orgalutran, the average number
of eggs that could be harvested was between 7.9 and 11.6 per woman. Between 20%
and 31% of the women became pregnant. Overall, the values for the GnRH agonists
were slightly higher.
What is the risk associated with
Orgalutran?
In studies, the most common side effect with
Orgalutran (seen in more than 1 patient in 10) was a skin reaction at the
injection site, mainly redness with or without swelling. For the full list of
all side effects reported with Orgalutran, see the package leaflet.
Orgalutran should not be used in people who may be
hypersensitive (allergic) to ganirelix, to any of the other ingredients, to
GnRH or to other GnRH analogues (medicines that have a similar structure to
GnRH and modify the activity of GnRH in the body). It must not be used by women
who are pregnant or breast-feeding, or in women with moderate or severe kidney
or liver disease. For the full list of restrictions, see the package leaflet.
Sometimes, the ovaries can over-respond to
stimulation. This is called ‘ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome’. Doctors and
patients must be aware of this possibility.
Why has Orgalutran been approved?
The CHMP decided that Orgalutran’s benefits are
greater than its risks and recommended that it be given marketing
authorisation.
Other information about Orgalutran
The European Commission granted a marketing
authorisation valid throughout the European Union for Orgalutran to N.V.
Organon on 17 May 2000. The marketing authorisation is valid for an unlimited
period.
For more information about treatment with
Orgalutran, read the package leaflet (also part of the EPAR) or contact your
doctor or pharmacist.
Source: European Medicines Agency
