Comparative Study of BRIDION versus Neostigmine as a Reversal Agent for Neuromuscular Blockade Induced by Rocuronium or Vecuronium at Reappearance of T2 (Moderate Blockade)

A multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, active-controlled, safety-assessor blinded study comparing BRIDION and neostigmine enrolled 189 patients (87 women and 102 men, 95% were ASA class 1 and 2 and 99% were Caucasian, median weights were 72 kg and 76 kg and median ages were 50 years and 51 years in the rocuronium and vecuronium groups, respectively). Patients were randomly assigned to the rocuronium or vecuronium group and underwent elective surgical procedures under general anesthesia that required endotracheal intubation and maintenance of neuromuscular blockade. The surgical procedures were mainly endocrine, ocular, ENT, abdominal (gynecological, colorectal, urological), orthopedic, vascular, or dermatological. At the reappearance of T2, after the last dose of rocuronium or vecuronium, 2 mg/kg BRIDION or 50 mcg/kg neostigmine was administered in a randomized order as a single bolus injection. The time from start of administration of BRIDION or neostigmine to recovery of the TOF (T4/T1) ratio to 0.9 was assessed. Generally, a T4/T1 ratio ≥0.9 correlates with recovery from neuromuscular blockade.

Return of the T4/T1 ratio to 0.9 after the reappearance of T2 was overall faster with BRIDION 2 mg/kg as compared to neostigmine 50 mcg/kg in the setting of rocuronium or vecuronium-induced neuromuscular blockade (Figures 1 and 2).

Comparative Study of BRIDION versus Neostigmine as a Reversal Agent for Neuromuscular Blockade Induced by Rocuronium or Vecuronium at 1 to 2 PTCs (Deep Blockade)

A multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, active-controlled, safety-assessor blinded study comparing BRIDION and neostigmine enrolled 157 patients (86 women and 71 men; 8% ASA class 1, 71% class 2, and 21% class 3; 79% Caucasian; median weights of 81 kg and 84 kg, and median ages of 54 years and 56 years in the rocuronium and vecuronium groups, respectively). Patients were randomly assigned to the rocuronium or vecuronium group and underwent elective surgical procedures under general anesthesia that required endotracheal intubation and maintenance of neuromuscular blockade. The surgical procedures were mainly abdominal (gynecological, colorectal, urological), orthopedic, reconstructive, or neurological. At 1 to 2 PTCs, after the last dose of rocuronium or vecuronium, 4 mg/kg BRIDION or 70 mcg/kg neostigmine was administered in a randomized order as a single bolus injection. The time from start of administration of BRIDION or neostigmine to recovery of the TOF (T4/T1) ratio to 0.9 was assessed, although neostigmine was not expected to reverse neuromuscular blockade at a depth of 1 to 2 PTCs. Generally, a T4/T1 ratio ≥0.9 correlates with recovery from neuromuscular blockade.

Return of the T4/T1 ratio to 0.9 in patients with 1 to 2 PTCs with BRIDION 4 mg/kg had a wider range of recovery times but the median time to recovery was comparable to the study of reversal at T2 (2.7 minutes with 25th and 75th percentiles of 2.1 and 4.3 minutes for rocuronium [N=37], and 3.3 minutes with 25th and 75th percentiles of 2.3 and 6.6 minutes for vecuronium [N=47]). There were 7 and 6 censored observations in the rocuronium and vecuronium groups, respectively.

Reversal of Neuromuscular Blockade 3 Minutes after Rocuronium 1.2 mg/kg

Time to recovery from neuromuscular blockade induced by succinylcholine compared with recovery from neuromuscular blockade induced by rocuronium followed 3 minutes later with BRIDION was assessed in a multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, active-controlled, safety-assessor blinded study. The study was conducted in 110 patients (64 women and 46 men, ASA class 1 and 2, 78% were Caucasian, median weight was 70 kg, median age was 43 years). Patients underwent elective surgical procedures under general anesthesia that required endotracheal intubation and a short duration of neuromuscular relaxation. The laparoscopic or open surgical procedures were mainly gynecological, orthopedic, or reconstructive. Return of the first twitch in a TOF (T1) to 10% of baseline was compared between BRIDION 16 mg/kg for reversal of rocuronium 1.2 mg/kg versus spontaneous recovery from succinylcholine 1 mg/kg.

Recovery to T1 of 10% of baseline (relative to the time of administration of rocuronium or succinylcholine) was overall faster in the rocuronium/BRIDION group compared with succinylcholine alone (Table 4).

Comparative Study of BRIDION versus Neostigmine as a Reversal Agent for Neuromuscular Blockade Induced by Rocuronium or Vecuronium in Pediatric Patients 2 to <17 Years of Age

Time to recovery from neuromuscular blockade induced by rocuronium or vecuronium followed by administration of BRIDION or neostigmine was assessed in a randomized, double-blind, active comparator-controlled study. The study was conducted in 288 randomized pediatric patients 2 to <17 years of age, of which 276 patients received treatment (153 boys and 123 girls; ASA class 1, 2, and 3; 89.5% were Caucasian; median weight was 25 kg; median age was 7 years). The primary efficacy objective was to evaluate the effect of BRIDION compared to neostigmine for reversal of moderate neuromuscular blockade as measured by time to recovery to a TOF ratio of ≥0.9.

Recovery to a TOF ratio of ≥0.9 was statistically significantly faster in pediatric patients 2 to <17 years of age dosed with BRIDION 2 mg/kg (N=33) compared with neostigmine (N=34) for reversal of moderate block based on a geometric mean of 1.7 minutes for BRIDION 2 mg/kg and 7.4 minutes for neostigmine (ratio of geometric means was 0.22, 95% CI (0.16, 0.32)). These effects were consistent across age cohorts studied (2 to <6; 6 to <12; 12 to <17 years of age) and neuromuscular blocking agent (rocuronium and vecuronium).