Publications by authors named "D Vitezic"

To provide insight into regulatory decision-making at the time of granting initial orphan designation by the Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products, we have conducted a retrospective analysis for viral vector-mediated gene therapies in rare non-oncological conditions with respect to the data provided to support the criteria to be met in successful applications. We found that a high proportion of non-clinical in vivo data was used for gene therapies, indicating earlier submissions of products that are at the stage of preclinical research and not in clinical development. Clinical data were submitted in only 13% of the applications, containing preliminary results derived from early-stage clinical trials in few patients.

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Traumatic brain injury (TBI), which is a global public health concern, can take various forms, from mild concussions to blast injuries, and each damage type has a particular mechanism of progression. However, TBI is a condition with complex pathophysiology and heterogenous clinical presentation, which makes it difficult to model for in vitro and in vivo studies and obtain relevant results that can easily be translated to the clinical setting. Accordingly, the pharmacological options for TBI management are still scarce.

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Article Synopsis
  • Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a rare inherited disease that varies in symptoms and requires diverse care for affected patients, prompting a systematic literature review of pharmacoeconomic evaluations for existing therapies.
  • The review focused on studies published in English after 2016, analyzing 14 relevant studies for quality and reporting standards using established checklists, and highlighting the need for cost-effectiveness analysis even for high-cost treatments.
  • The findings stress the importance of establishing specific willingness to pay thresholds for orphan medicines to ensure that SMA patients have access to safe and effective therapies, while also emphasizing the necessity of considering new information in medication decisions.
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This report presents challenging psychopharmacotherapy management of a psychotic disorder in a patient with a delicate pharmacogenetic profile and drug-drug interactions. A 31-year old woman diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2017 was referred by her psychiatrist to a clinical pharmacologist for interpretation of a pharmacogenetic test and advice regarding optimal psychopharmacotherapy. In spite of adherence to aripiprazole, olanzapine, risperidone, and levomepromazine, and rational anxiolytic therapy, she still experienced anxiety, anhedonia, loss of appetite, sleeping problems, and auditory hallucinations with commands to harm herself.

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