Clinical pharmacology review of opicapone for the treatment of Parkinson's disease

Two catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitors are currently used as add-on therapy to levodopa for the amelioration of end-of-dose motor fluctuations in Parkinson's disease patients: entacapone, which has moderate efficacy and requires multiple dosing, and tolcapone, which has a poor safety profile. Opicapone (OPC) is a novel, long-acting, peripherally selective, once daily, third-generation catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitor. Two Phase III clinical trials demonstrated OPC efficacy in reducing OFF-time by an average of about 60 min daily compared with placebo, without increasing ON-time with troublesome dyskinesias, with a good drug safety profile. In June 2016, the European Commission granted a marketing authorization valid throughout the European Union for OPC, indicated as adjunctive of levodopa decarboxylase inhibitors in adult patients with Parkinson's disease and end-of-dose motor fluctuations.