Informed Dosing = Better Care for Children
PTN research addresses knowledge gaps in the use of medications for pediatric patients. By 2017, the PTN expects to submit pediatric data for >20 products to the FDA.
Here we explore examples of some of the many ways in which PTN studies are informing better care:
- 1 in 10 US infants is born prematurely
- Our research has shown that the smallest babies sometimes need higher medication doses due to their immature organs
- PTN studies for this vulnerable population include
- Preventive therapies for bronchopulmonary dysplasia, a chronic lung disease affecting ~17,000 US infants per year
- Medications for potentially life-threatening infections
Children With Obesity
- About 1 in 5 US children is considered obese
- These patients are often excluded from clinical trials due to differences in the way their bodies handle drugs
- A PTN systematic review found only 20 studies that have examined drug pharmacokinetics in obese children
- Our studies evaluating dosing guidelines for obese children include
- Antibiotics for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, the leading cause of hospitalization among US children and adolescents
- Antiseizure medications
Innovations in Pediatric Trial Design
- Advanced pharmacokinetic modeling
- Cutting-edge blood sampling methods
- Leftover samples from other laboratory tests
- Mining existing clinical data
Every PTN study is closely examined to determine how to obtain the most valuable and generalizable results while minimizing the risk to participants.