Background: COPD guidelines recommend the combined use of inhaled, long-acting β2-agonists and long-acting muscarinic antagonists if symptoms are not improved by a single agent. This systematic review assessed the efficacy and safety of the fixed-dose combination of the long-acting β2-agonist indacaterol and long-acting muscarinic antagonist glycopyrronium (QVA149) compared with its monocomponents (glycopyrronium and indacaterol) and tiotropium for the treatment of moderate to severe COPD.
Methods: This was a systematic review of randomized, placebo-controlled or crossover trials (3-64 weeks). Primary outcomes were trough FEV1, severe adverse events, and serious cardiovascular events.
Results: Five trials (4,842 patients) were included. Compared with tiotropium, QVA149 showed a significant increase in trough FEV1 (70 mL; P < .0001) and a decreased use of rescue medication (-0.63 puffs/d; P < .0001). Patients receiving QVA149 had a 19% greater likelihood of experiencing a minimal clinical important difference (MCID) in the number needed to treat for benefit (NNTB) (NNTB = 11) and a 16% greater likelihood of achieving an MCID in the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) (NNTB = 11). Similarly, QVA149 vs glycopyrronium showed a significant increase in trough FEV1 (70 mL; P < .0001), a significant reduction in rescue medication use (-0.59; P < .0001), and a significant increase in the rate of patients achieving an MCID in the SGRQ (NNTB = 12). QVA149 showed similar levels of safety and tolerability to both comparators. It was not possible to perform a pooled analysis of data comparing QVA149 vs indacaterol.
Conclusions: Once-daily, inhaled QVA149 showed superior efficacy compared with glycopyrronium and the current standard of care, tiotropium, in patients with moderate to severe COPD.