Santhera and NIH Collaborate To Evaluate Catena in Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.

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Santhera Pharmaceuticals (SIX: SANN), a Swiss specialty pharmaceutical company focused on orphan neuromuscular diseases, announced today a collaboration with the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate Catena as potential treatment of Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis (PPMS). An estimated 150,000 to 300,000 patients worldwide suffer from this rare but devastating form of Multiple Sclerosis. The Phase I/II trial consists of a one-year observational and a two-year interventional period.

The IPPoMS (Idebenone in Patients with Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis) trial is a Phase I/II study with a 12-month pre-treatment baseline period followed by a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled treatment of 24 months duration investigating the safety and efficacy of one dose of Catena (INN: idebenone) versus placebo. During the baseline period up to 80 patients will be enrolled to collect …