FOSAVANCE 70 mg/2800 IU tablets

Each tablet contains 70 mg alendronic acid as alendronate sodium trihydrate, and 70 micrograms (2800 IU) colecalciferol (vitamin D₃).

Excipients:

Each tablet contains 62 mg lactose anhydrous and 8 mg sucrose.

For a full list of excipients, see section 6.1.

Tablet.

Capsule-shaped, white to off-white tablets, marked with an outline of a bone image on one side, and '710' on the other.

Treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis in patients at risk of vitamin D insufficiency.

FOSAVANCE reduces the risk of vertebral and hip fractures.

The recommended dosage is one FOSAVANCE tablet once weekly.

Due to the nature of the disease process in osteoporosis, FOSAVANCE is intended for long-term use.

To permit adequate absorption of alendronate:

FOSAVANCE must be taken with water only (not mineral water) at least 30 minutes before the first food, beverage, or medicinal product (including antacids, calcium supplements and vitamins) of the day. Other beverages (including mineral water), food and some medicinal products are likely to reduce the absorption of alendronate (see section 4.5).

The following instructions should be followed exactly in order to minimize the risk of oesophageal irritation and related adverse reactions (see section 4.4):

• FOSAVANCE should only be swallowed after getting up for the day with a full glass of water (not less than 200ml or 7fl.oz.).

• Patients should only swallow FOSAVANCE whole. Patients should not crush or chew the tablet or allow the tablet to dissolve in their mouths because of a potential for oropharyngeal ulceration.

• Patients should not lie down until after their first food of the day which should be at least 30 minutes after taking the tablet.

• Patients should not lie down for at least 30 minutes after taking FOSAVANCE.

• FOSAVANCE should not be taken at bedtime or before arising for the day.

Patients should receive supplemental calcium if intake from diet is inadequate (see section 4.4). Additional supplementation with vitamin D should be considered on an individual basis taking into account any vitamin D intake from vitamins and dietary supplements. The equivalence of intake of 2800 IU of vitamin D₃ weekly in FOSAVANCE to daily dosing of vitamin D 400 IU has not been studied.

Use in the elderly:

In clinical studies there was no age-related difference in the efficacy or safety profiles of alendronate. Therefore no dosage adjustment is necessary for the elderly.

Use in renal impairment:

No dosage adjustment is necessary for patients with a glomerular filtration rate (GFR) greater than 35ml/min. FOSAVANCE is not recommended for patients with renal impairment where GFR is less than 35ml/min, due to lack of experience.

Use in children and adolescents:

FOSAVANCE has not been studied in children and adolescents and therefore should not be given to them.

• Hypersensitivity to the active substances or to any of the excipients.

• Abnormalities of the oesophagus and other factors which delay oesophageal emptying such as stricture or achalasia.

• Inability to stand or sit upright for at least 30 minutes.

• Hypocalcaemia.

Alendronate

Alendronate can cause local irritation of the upper gastrointestinal mucosa. Because there is a potential for worsening of the underlying disease, caution should be used when alendronate is given to patients with active upper gastrointestinal problems, such as dysphagia, oesophageal disease, gastritis, duodenitis, ulcers, or with a recent history (within the previous year) of major gastrointestinal disease such as peptic ulcer, or active gastrointestinal bleeding, or surgery of the upper gastrointestinal tract other than pyloroplasty (see section 4.3). In patients with known Barrett's oesophagus, prescribers should consider the benefits and potential risks of alendronate on an individual patient basis.

Oesophageal reactions (sometimes severe and requiring hospitalisation), such as oesophagitis, oesophageal ulcers and oesophageal erosions, rarely followed by oesophageal stricture, have been reported in patients receiving alendronate. Physicians should therefore be alert to any signs or symptoms signalling a possible oesophageal reaction and patients should be instructed to discontinue alendronate and seek medical attention if they develop symptoms of oesophageal irritation such as dysphagia, pain on swallowing or retrosternal pain or new or worsening heartburn (see section 4.8).

The risk of severe oesophageal adverse reactions appears to be greater in patients who fail to take alendronate properly and/or who continue to take alendronate after developing symptoms suggestive of oesophageal irritation. It is very important that the full dosing instructions are provided to, and are understood by the patient (see section 4.2). Patients should be informed that failure to follow these instructions may increase their risk of oesophageal problems.

While no increased risk was observed in extensive clinical trials with alendronate, there have been rare (post-marketing) reports of gastric and duodenal ulcers, some of which were severe and with complications (see section 4.8).

Osteonecrosis of the jaw, generally associated with tooth extraction and/or local infection (including osteomyelitis), has been reported in patients with cancer who are receiving treatment regimens including primarily intravenously administered bisphosphonates. Many of these patients were also receiving chemotherapy and corticosteroids. Osteonecrosis of the jaw has also been reported in patients with osteoporosis receiving oral bisphosphonates.

A dental examination with appropriate preventive dentistry should be considered prior to treatment with bisphosphonates in patients with concomitant risk factors (e.g. cancer, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, corticosteroids, poor oral hygiene, periodontal disease).

While on treatment, these patients should avoid invasive dental procedures if possible. For patients who develop osteonecrosis of the jaw while on bisphosphonate therapy, dental surgery may exacerbate the condition. For patients requiring dental procedures, there are no data available to suggest whether discontinuation of bisphosphonate treatment reduces the risk of osteonecrosis of the jaw.

Clinical judgement of the treating physician should guide the management plan of each patient based on individual benefit/risk assessment.

Bone, joint, and/or muscle pain has been reported in patients taking bisphosphonates. In postmarketing experience, these symptoms have rarely been severe and/or incapacitating (see section 4.8). The time to onset of symptoms varied from one day to several months after starting treatment. Most patients had relief of symptoms after stopping treatment. A subset had recurrence of symptoms when rechallenged with the same medicinal product or another bisphosphonate.

Stress fractures (also known as insufficiency fractures) of the proximal femoral shaft have been reported in patients treated long-term with alendronic acid (time to onset in the majority of cases ranged from 18 months to 10 years). The fractures occurred after minimal or no trauma and some patients experienced thigh pain, often associated with imaging features of stress fractures, weeks to months before presenting with a completed femoral fracture. Fractures were often bilateral; therefore the contralateral femur should be examined in bisphosphonate-treated patients who have sustained a femoral shaft fracture. Poor healing of these fractures was also reported. Discontinuation of bisphosphonate therapy in patients with stress fracture is advisable pending evaluation of the patient, based on an individual benefit risk assessment.

Patients should be instructed that if they miss a dose of FOSAVANCE they should take one tablet on the morning after they remember. They should not take two tablets on the same day but should return to taking one tablet once a week, as originally scheduled on their chosen day.

FOSAVANCE is not recommended for patients with renal impairment where GFR is less than 35ml/min (see section 4.2).

Causes of osteoporosis other than oestrogen deficiency and ageing should be considered.

Hypocalcaemia must be corrected before initiating therapy with FOSAVANCE (see section 4.3). Other disorders affecting mineral metabolism (such as vitamin D deficiency and hypoparathyroidism) should also be effectively treated before starting FOSAVANCE. The content of vitamin D in FOSAVANCE is not suitable for correction of vitamin D deficiency. In patients with these conditions, serum calcium and symptoms of hypocalcaemia should be monitored during therapy with FOSAVANCE.

Due to the positive effects of alendronate in increasing bone mineral, decreases in serum calcium and phosphate may occur especially in patients taking glucocrticoids in whom calcium absorption may be decreased. These are usually small and asymptomatic. However, there have been rare reports of symptomatic hypocalcaemia, which have occasionally been severe and often occurred in patients with predisposing conditions (e.g. hypoparathyroidism, vitamin D deficiency and calcium malabsorption) (see section 4.8).

Colecalciferol

Vitamin D₃ may increase the magnitude of hypercalcaemia and/or hypercalciuria when administered to patients with disease associated with unregulated overproduction of calcitriol (e.g. leukaemia, lymphoma, sarcoidosis). Urine and serum calcium should be monitored in these patients.

Patients with malabsorption may not adequately absorb vitamin D

Excipients

This medicinal product contains lactose and sucrose. Patients with rare hereditary problems of fructose intolerance, galactose intolerance, the Lapp lactase deficiency, glucose-galactose malabsorption or sucrase-isomaltase insufficiency should not take this medicinal product.

Alendronate

If taken at the same time, it is likely that food and beverages (including mineral water), calcium supplements, antacids, and some oral medicinal products will interfere with absorption of alendronate. Therefore, patients must wait at least 30 minutes after taking alendronate before taking any other oral medicinal product (see sections 4.2 and 5.2).

No other clinically significant interactions with medicinal products are anticipated. A number of patients in the clinical trials received oestrogen (intravaginal, transdermal, or oral) while taking alendronate. No adverse reactions attributable to their concomitant use were identified.

Since NSAID use is associated with gastrointestinal irritation, caution should be used during concomitant use with alendronate.

Although specific interaction studies were not performed, in clinical studies alendronate was used concomitantly with a wide range of commonly prescribed medicinal products without evidence of interactions of clinical relevance.

Colecalciferol

Olestra, mineral oils, orlistat, and bile acid sequestrants (e.g. cholestyramine, colestipol) may impair the absorption of vitamin D. Anticonvulsants, cimetidine and thiazides may increase the catabolism of vitamin D. Additional vitamin D supplements may be considered on an individual basis.

FOSAVANCE is only intended for use in postmenopausal women and therefore it should not be used during pregnancy or in breast-feeding women.

There are no adequate data from the use of FOSAVANCE in pregnant women. Animal studies with alendronate do not indicate direct harmful effects with respect to pregnancy, embryonal/foetal development, or postnatal development. Alendronate given during pregnancy in rats caused dystocia related to hypocalcaemia (see section 5.3). Studies in animals have shown hypercalcaemia and reproductive toxicity with high doses of vitamin D (see section 5.3).

It is not known whether alendronate is excreted into human breast milk. Colecalciferol and some of its active metabolites pass into breast milk.

No studies on the effects on the ability to drive and use machines have been performed.

However, certain adverse reactions that have been reported with FOSAVANCE may affect some patients' ability to drive or operate machinery. Individual responses to FOSAVANCE may vary (see section 4.8).

The following adverse reactions have been reported during clinical studies and/or post-marketing use with alendronate.

No additional adverse reactions have been identified for FOSAVANCE.

[Common (1/100, < 1/10), uncommon (1/1000, < 1/100), rare (1/10,000, < 1/1000), very rare (< 1/10,000)]

During post-marketing experience the following reactions have been reported (frequency not known):

Laboratory test findings

In clinical studies, asymptomatic, mild and transient decreases in serum calcium and phosphate were observed in approximately 18 % and 10 %, respectively, of patients taking alendronate 10 mg/day versus approximately 12 % and 3 % of those taking placebo. However, the incidences of decreases in serum calcium to < 8.0 mg/dl (2.0 mmol/l) and serum phosphate to 2.0 mg/dl (0.65 mmol/l) were similar in both treatment groups.

Alendronate

Hypocalcaemia, hypophosphataemia and upper gastrointestinal adverse reactions, such as upset stomach, heartburn, oesophagitis, gastritis, or ulcer, may result from oral overdose.

No specific information is available on the treatment of overdose with alendronate. In case of overdose with FOSAVANCE, milk or antacids should be given to bind alendronate. Owing to the risk of oesophageal irritation, vomiting should not be induced and the patient should remain fully upright.

Colecalciferol

Vitamin D toxicity has not been documented during chronic therapy in generally healthy adults at a dose less than 10,000 IU/day. In a clinical study of healthy adults a 4000 IU daily dose of vitamin D₃ for up to five months was not associated with hypercalciuria or hypercalcaemia.

Pharmacotherapeutic group: Bisphosphonates, combinations, ATC code: M05BB03.

FOSAVANCE is a combination tablet containing the two active substances alendronate sodium trihydrate and colecalciferol (vitamin D₃).

Alendronate

Alendronate sodium is a bisphosphonate that inhibits osteoclastic bone resorption with no direct effect on bone formation. Preclinical studies have shown preferential localisation of alendronate to sites of active resorption. Activity of osteoclasts is inhibited, but recruitment or attachment of osteoclasts is not affected. The bone formed during treatment with alendronate is of normal quality.

Colecalciferol (vitamin D₃)

Vitamin D₃ is produced in the skin by conversion of 7-dehydrocholesterol to vitamin D₃ by ultraviolet light. In the absence of adequate sunlight exposure, vitamin D₃ is an essential dietary nutrient. Vitamin D₃ is converted to 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃ in the liver, and stored until needed. Conversion to the active calcium-mobilizing hormone 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (calcitriol) in the kidney is tightly regulated. The principal action of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ is to increase intestinal absorption of both calcium and phosphate as well as regulate serum calcium, renal calcium and phosphate excretion, bone formation and bone resorption.

Vitamin D₃ is required for normal bone formation. Vitamin D insufficiency develops when both sunlight exposure and dietary intake are inadequate. Insufficiency is associated with negative calcium balance, bone loss, and increased risk of skeletal fracture. In severe cases, deficiency results in secondary hyperparathyroidism, hypophosphataemia, proximal muscle weakness and osteomalacia, further increasing the risk of falls and fractures in osteoporotic individuals. Supplemental vitamin D reduces these risks and their consequences.

Osteoporosis is defined as bone mineral density (BMD) of the spine or hip 2.5 standard deviations (SD) below the mean value of a normal young population or as a previous fragility fracture, irrespective of BMD.

FOSAVANCE studies

The effect of FOSAVANCE (alendronate 70 mg/vitamin D₃ 2800 IU) on vitamin D status was demonstrated in a 15-week, multinational study that enrolled 682 osteoporotic post-menopausal women (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D at baseline: mean, 56 nmol/l [22.3 ng/ml]; range, 22.5-225 nmol/l [9-90 ng/ml]). Patients received the lower strength (70 mg/2800 IU) of FOSAVANCE (n=350) or FOSAMAX (alendronate) 70 mg (n=332) once a week; additional vitamin D supplements were prohibited. After 15 weeks of treatment, the mean serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were significantly higher (26 %) in the FOSAVANCE (70 mg/2800 IU) group (56 nmol/l [23 ng/ml]) than in the alendronate-only group (46 nmol/l [18.2 ng/ml]). The percentage of patients with vitamin D insufficiency (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D < 37.5 nmol/l [< 15 ng/ml]) was significantly reduced by 62.5 % with FOSAVANCE (70 mg/2800 IU) vs. alendronate-only (12 % vs. 32 %, respectively), through week 15. The percentage of patients with vitamin D deficiency (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D < 22.5 nmol/l [ < 9 ng/ml]) was significantly reduced by 92 % with FOSAVANCE (70 mg/2800 IU) vs. alendronate-only (1 % vs 13 %, respectively). In this study, mean 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in patients with vitamin D insufficiency at baseline (25- hydroxyvitamin D, 22.5 to 37.5 nmol/l [9 to < 15 ng/ml]) increased from 30 nmol/l (12.1 ng/ml) to 40 nmol/l (15.9 ng/ml) at week 15 in the FOSAVANCE (70 mg/2800 IU) group (n=75) and decreased from 30 nmol/l (12.0 ng/ml) at baseline to 26 nmol/l (10.4 ng/ml) at week 15 in the alendronate-only group (n=70). There were no differences in mean serum calcium, phosphate, or 24-hour urine calcium between treatment groups.

Alendronate studies

The therapeutic equivalence of alendronate once weekly 70 mg (n=519) and alendronate 10 mg daily (n=370) was demonstrated in a one-year multicentre study of postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. The mean increases from baseline in lumbar spine BMD at one year were 5.1 % (95 % CI: 4.8, 5.4 %) in the 70 mg once-weekly group and 5.4 % (95 % CI: 5.0, 5.8 %) in the 10 mg daily group. The mean BMD increases were 2.3 % and 2.9 % at the femoral neck and 2.9 % and 3.1 % at the total hip in the 70 mg once weekly and 10 mg daily groups, respectively. The two treatment groups were also similar with regard to BMD increases at other skeletal sites.

The effects of alendronate on bone mass and fracture incidence in post-menopausal women were examined in two initial efficacy studies of identical design (n=994) as well as in the Fracture Intervention Trial (FIT: n=6,459).

In the initial efficacy studies, the mean BMD increases with alendronate 10 mg/day relative to placebo at three years were 8.8 %, 5.9 % and 7.8 % at the spine, femoral neck and trochanter, respectively. Total body BMD also increased significantly. There was a 48 % reduction (alendronate 3.2 % vs placebo 6.2 %) in the proportion of patients treated with alendronate experiencing one or more vertebral fractures relative to those treated with placebo. In the two-year extension of these studies BMD at the spine and trochanter continued to increase and BMD at the femoral neck and total body were maintained.

FIT consisted of two placebo-controlled studies using alendronate daily (5 mg daily for two years and 10 mg daily for either one or two additional years):

• FIT 1: A three-year study of 2,027 patients who had at least one baseline vertebral (compression) fracture. In this study alendronate daily reduced the incidence of 1 new vertebral fracture by 47 % (alendronate 7.9 % vs. placebo 15.0 %). In addition, a statistically significant reduction was found in the incidence of hip fractures (1.1 % vs. 2.2 %, a reduction of 51 %).

• FIT 2: A four-year study of 4,432 patients with low bone mass but without a baseline vertebral fracture. In this study, a significant difference was observed in the analysis of the subgroup of osteoporotic women (37 % of the global population who correspond with the above definition of osteoporosis) in the incidence of hip fractures (alendronate 1.0 % vs. placebo 2.2 %, a reduction of 56 %) and in the incidence of 1 vertebral fracture (2.9 % vs. 5.8 %, a reduction of 50 %).

Alendronate

Absorption

Relative to an intravenous reference dose, the oral mean bioavailability of alendronate in women was 0.64 % for doses ranging from 5 to 70 mg when administered after an overnight fast and two hours before a standardised breakfast. Bioavailability was decreased similarly to an estimated 0.46 % and 0.39 % when alendronate was administered one hour or half an hour before a standardised breakfast. In osteoporosis studies, alendronate was effective when administered at least 30 minutes before the first food or beverage of the day.

The alendronate component in the FOSAVANCE (70 mg/2800 IU) combination tablet is bioequivalent to the alendronate 70 mg tablet.

Bioavailability was negligible whether alendronate was administered with, or up to two hours after, a standardised breakfast. Concomitant administration of alendronate with coffee or orange juice reduced bioavailability by approximately 60 %.

In healthy subjects, oral prednisone (20 mg three times daily for five days) did not produce a clinically meaningful change in oral bioavailability of alendronate (a mean increase ranging from 20 % to 44 %).

Distribution

Studies in rats show that alendronate transiently distributes to soft tissues following 1 mg/kg intravenous administration but is then rapidly redistributed to bone or excreted in the urine. The mean steady-state volume of distribution, exclusive of bone, is at least 28 litres in humans. Concentrations of alendronate in plasma following therapeutic oral doses are too low for analytical detection (< 5 ng/ml). Protein binding in human plasma is approximately 78 %.

Biotransformation

There is no evidence that alendronate is metabolised in animals or humans.

Elimination

Following a single intravenous dose of [¹⁴C]alendronate, approximately 50 % of the radioactivity was excreted in the urine within 72 hours and little or no radioactivity was recovered in the faeces. Following a single 10 mg intravenous dose, the renal clearance of alendronate was 71 ml/min, and systemic clearance did not exceed 200 ml/min. Plasma concentrations fell by more than 95 % within six hours following intravenous administration. The terminal half-life in humans is estimated to exceed ten years, reflecting release of alendronate from the skeleton. Alendronate is not excreted through the acidic or basic transport systems of the kidney in rats, and thus it is not anticipated to interfere with the excretion of other medicinal products by those systems in humans.

Colecalciferol

Absorption

In healthy adult subjects (males and females), following administration of FOSAVANCE after an overnight fast and two hours before a meal, the mean area under the serum-concentration-time curve (AUC_{0-120 hrs}) for vitamin D₃ (unadjusted for endogenous vitamin D₃ levels) was 296.4 ng•hr/ml. The mean maximal serum concentration (C_max) of vitamin D₃ was 5.9 ng/ml, and the median time to maximal serum concentration (T_max) was 12 hours. The bioavailability of the 2800 IU vitamin D₃ in FOSAVANCE is similar to 2800 IU vitamin D₃ administered alone.

Distribution

Following absorption, vitamin D₃ enters the blood as part of chylomicrons. Vitamin D₃ is rapidly distributed mostly to the liver where it undergoes metabolism to 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃, the major storage form. Lesser amounts are distributed to adipose and muscle tissue and stored as vitamin D₃ at these sites for later release into the circulation. Circulating vitamin D₃ is bound to vitamin D-binding protein.

Biotransformation

Vitamin D₃ is rapidly metabolized by hydroxylation in the liver to 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃, and subsequently metabolized in the kidney to 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, which represents the biologically active form. Further hydroxylation occurs prior to elimination. A small percentage of vitamin D₃ undergoes glucuronidation prior to elimination.

Elimination

When radioactive vitamin D₃ was administered to healthy subjects, the mean urinary excretion of radioactivity after 48 hours was 2.4 %, and the mean faecal excretion of radioactivity after 4 days was 4.9 %. In both cases, the excreted radioactivity was almost exclusively as metabolites of the parent. The mean half-life of vitamin D₃ in the serum following an oral dose of FOSAVANCE (70 mg/2800 IU) is approximately 24 hours.

Characteristics in patients

Preclinical studies show that alendronate that is not deposited in bone is rapidly excreted in the urine. No evidence of saturation of bone uptake was found after chronic dosing with cumulative intravenous doses up to 35 mg/kg in animals. Although no clinical information is available, it is likely that, as in animals, elimination of alendronate via the kidney will be reduced in patients with impaired renal function. Therefore, somewhat greater accumulation of alendronate in bone might be expected in patients with impaired renal function (see section 4.2).

Non-clinical studies with the combination of alendronate and colecalciferol have not been conducted.

Alendronate

Non-clinical data reveal no special hazard for humans based on conventional studies of safety pharmacology, repeated dose toxicity, genotoxicity and carcinogenic potential. Studies in rats have shown that treatment with alendronate during pregnancy was associated with dystocia in dams during parturition which was related to hypocalcaemia. In studies, rats given high doses showed an increased incidence of incomplete foetal ossification. The relevance to humans is unknown.

Colecalciferol

At doses far higher than the human therapeutic range, reproductive toxicity has been observed in animal studies.

Microcrystalline cellulose (E460)

Lactose anhydrous

Medium chain triglycerides

Gelatin

Croscarmellose sodium

Sucrose

Colloidal silicon dioxide

Magnesium stearate (E572)

Butyl hydroxytoluene (E321)

Modified starch (maize)

Sodium aluminium silicate (E554)

Not applicable.

18 months.

Store in the original blister in order to protect from moisture and light.

Wallet with sealed aluminium/aluminium blisters, in cartons containing 2 (1 wallet x 2 tablets), 4 (1 wallet x 4 tablets), 6 (3 wallets x 2 tablets), 12 (3 wallets x 4 tablets) or 40 (10 wallets x 4 tablets) tablets.

Not all pack sizes may be marketed.

No special requirements.

Merck Sharp & Dohme Ltd.

Hertford Road, Hoddesdon

Hertfordshire EN11 9BU

United Kingdom

EU/1/05/310/001 – 2 tablets

EU/1/05/310/002 – 4 tablets

EU/1/05/310/003 – 6 tablets

EU/1/05/310/004 – 12 tablets

EU/1/05/310/005 – 40 tablets

24 August 2005

09 November 2009

® denotes registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA.

© Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited 2009. All rights reserved.

SPC.FSP.09.UK.3184