Lansoprazole was not effective in pediatric patients with symptomatic GERD one month to less than one year of age in a multicenter, double-blind, placebo controlled study. Therefore, safety and effectiveness have not been established in patients less than one year. Nonclinical studies in juvenile rats have demonstrated an adverse effect of heart valve thickening and bone changes at lansoprazole doses higher than the maximum recommended equivalent human dose.

The safety and effectiveness of lansoprazole have been established in pediatric patients one to 17 years of age for short-term treatment of symptomatic GERD and erosive esophagitis. 

In clinical studies of symptomatic GERD and erosive esophagitis, lansoprazole was not administered beyond 12 weeks in one to 11 year olds. It is not known if lansoprazole is safe and effective if used longer than the recommended duration. Do not exceed the recommended dose and duration of use in pediatric patients (see Juvenile Animal Toxicity Data).

Neonate to less than one year of age 

The pharmacokinetics of lansoprazole were studied in pediatric patients with GERD aged less than 28 days and one to 11 months. Compared to healthy adults receiving 30 mg, neonates had higher exposure (mean weight-based normalized AUC values 2.04 and 1.88 fold higher at doses of 0.5 and 1 mg/kg/day, respectively). Infants aged ≤10 weeks had clearance and exposure values that were similar to neonates. Infants aged greater than 10 weeks who received 1 mg/kg/day had mean AUC values that were similar to adults who received a 30 mg dose. 

Lansoprazole was not found to be effective in a U.S. and Polish four week multi-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study of 162 patients between one month and less than 12 months of age with symptomatic GERD based on a medical history of crying/fussing/irritability associated with feedings who had not responded to conservative GERD management (i.e., non-pharmacologic intervention) for seven to 14 days. Patients received lansoprazole as a suspension daily (0.2 to 0.3 mg/kg/day in infants ≤10 weeks of age or 1.0 to 1.5 mg/kg/day in infants greater than 10 weeks or placebo) for up to four weeks of double-blind treatment. 

The primary efficacy endpoint was assessed by greater than 50% reduction from baseline in either the percent of feedings with a crying/fussing/irritability episode or the duration (minutes) of a crying/fussing/irritability episode within one hour after feeding. 

There was no difference in the percentage of responders between the lansoprazole pediatric suspension group and placebo group (54% in both groups). 

There were no adverse events reported in pediatric clinical studies (one month to less than 12 months of age) that were not previously observed in adults. 

Based on the results of the Phase 3 efficacy study, lansoprazole was not shown to be effective. Therefore, these results do not support the use of lansoprazole in treating symptomatic GERD in infants.

One to 11 years of age

In an uncontrolled, open-label, U.S. multi-center study, 66 pediatric patients (one to 11 years of age) with GERD were assigned, based on body weight, to receive an initial dose of either lansoprazole delayed-release capsules 15 mg daily if ≤30 kg or lansoprazole delayed-release capsules 30 mg daily if greater than 30 kg administered for eight to 12 weeks. The lansoprazole dose was increased (up to 30 mg twice daily) in 24 of 66 pediatric patients after two or more weeks of treatment if they remained symptomatic. At baseline 85% of patients had mild to moderate overall GERD symptoms (assessed by investigator interview), 58% had non-erosive GERD and 42% had erosive esophagitis (assessed by endoscopy).

After eight to 12 weeks of lansoprazole treatment, the intent-to-treat analysis demonstrated an approximate 50% reduction in frequency and severity of GERD symptoms.

Twenty one of 27 erosive esophagitis patients were healed at eight weeks and 100% of patients were healed at 12 weeks by endoscopy (Table 4).

In a study of 66 pediatric patients in the age group one year to 11 years old after treatment with lansoprazole delayed-release capsules given orally in doses of 15 mg daily to 30 mg twice daily, increases in serum gastrin levels were similar to those observed in adult studies. Median fasting serum gastrin levels increased 89% from 51 pg/mL at baseline to 97 pg/mL [interquartile range (25th to 75th percentile) of 71 to 130 pg/mL] at the final visit.

The pediatric safety of lansoprazole delayed-release capsules has been assessed in 66 pediatric patients aged one to 11 years of age. Of the 66 patients with GERD 85% (56/66) took lansoprazole for eight weeks and 15% (10/66) took it for 12 weeks.

The most frequently reported (two or more patients) treatment-related adverse reactions in patients one to 11 years of age (N=66) were constipation (5%) and headache (3%).

Twelve to 17 years of age

In an uncontrolled, open-label, U.S. multi-center study, 87 adolescent patients (12 to 17 years of age) with symptomatic GERD were treated with lansoprazole for eight to 12 weeks. Baseline upper endoscopies classified these patients into two groups: 64 (74%) non-erosive GERD and 23 (26%) erosive esophagitis (EE). The non-erosive GERD patients received lansoprazole delayed-release capsules 15 mg daily for eight weeks and the EE patients received lansoprazole delayed-release capsules 30 mg daily for eight to 12 weeks. At baseline, 89% of these patients had mild to moderate overall GERD symptoms (assessed by investigator interviews). During eight weeks of lansoprazole treatment, adolescent patients experienced a 63% reduction in frequency and a 69% reduction in severity of GERD symptoms based on diary results.

Twenty one of 22 (95.5%) adolescent erosive esophagitis patients were healed after eight weeks of lansoprazole treatment. One patient remained unhealed after 12 weeks of treatment (Table 5).

In these 87 adolescent patients, increases in serum gastrin levels were similar to those observed in adult studies, median fasting serum gastrin levels increased 42% from 45 pg/mL at baseline to 64 pg/mL [interquartile range (25th to 75th percentile) of 44 to 88 pg/mL] at the final visit. (Normal serum gastrin levels are 25 to 111 pg/mL.)

The safety of lansoprazole delayed-release capsules has been assessed in these 87 adolescent patients. Of the 87 adolescent patients with GERD, 6% (5/87) took lansoprazole for less than six weeks, 93% (81/87) for six to 10 weeks, and 1% (1/87) for greater than 10 weeks.

The most frequently reported (at least 3%) treatment-related adverse reactions in these patients were headache (7%), abdominal pain (5%), nausea (3%) and dizziness (3%). Treatment-related dizziness, reported in this prescribing information as occurring in less than 1% of adult patients, was reported in this study by three adolescent patients with non-erosive GERD, who had dizziness concurrently with other reactions (such as migraine, dyspnea, and vomiting).

Juvenile Animal Toxicity Data

In a juvenile rat study, adverse effects on bone growth and development and heart valves were observed at lansoprazole doses higher than the maximum recommended equivalent human dose.

An eight-week oral toxicity study with a four-week recovery phase was conducted in juvenile rats, with lansoprazole administered from postnatal Day 7 (age equivalent to neonatal humans) through 62 (age equivalent to approximately 14 years in humans) at doses of 40 to 500 mg/kg/day (about 1.2 to 12 times the daily pediatric dose of 15 mg in children age one to 11 years weighing 30 kg or less, based on AUC).

Heart valve thickening occurred at a dose of 500 mg/kg/day (approximately 12 times the daily dose of 15 mg in pediatric patients age one to 11 years weighing 30 kg or less, based on AUC). Heart valve thickening was not observed at the next lower dose (250 mg/kg/day) and below. The findings trended towards reversibility after a four-week drug-free recovery period. The relevance of heart valve thickening in this study to pediatric patients less than approximately 12 years of age is unknown. These findings are not relevant for patients 12 years of age and older. No effects on heart valves were observed in a 13-week intravenous toxicity study of lansoprazole in adolescent rats (approximately 12 years human age equivalence) at systemic exposures similar to those achieved in the eight-week oral toxicity study in juvenile (neonatal) rats.

In the eight-week oral toxicity study, doses equal to or greater than 100 mg/kg/day (about 2.5 times the daily pediatric dose of 15 mg in children age one to 11 years weighing 30 kg or less, based on AUC) produced delayed growth, with impairment of weight gain observed as early as postnatal Day 10 (age equivalent to neonatal humans). At the end of treatment, the signs of impaired growth at 100 mg/kg/day and higher included reductions in body weight (14% to 44% compared to controls), absolute weight of multiple organs, femur weight, femur length, and crown-rump length. Femoral growth plate thickness was reduced only in males and only at the 500 mg/kg/day dose. The effects related to delayed growth persisted through the end of the 4-week recovery period. Longer term data were not collected.