Pramipexole benefits RLS patients on multiple endpoints

German drugmaker Boehringer Ingelheim presented strong results from a large pramipexole trial program in restless legs syndrome at the 12th Congress of European Federation of Neurological Societies, held in Madrid, Spain.

The results of two large Phase IV trials showed that, while the agent significantly improves the characteristic symptoms among patients with moderate-to-severe RLS, it also demonstrated significant beneficial effects on associated symptoms such as limb pain and health-related quality-of-life, including associated mood disturbance.

Limb pain and mood disturbance are important secondary ailments commonly experienced by RLS patients, and these studies are the first in which an approved RLS treatment has demonstrated benefits addressing these symptoms in a clinical study in RLS patients, noted the German firm.