Development and Evaluation of a Virtual Population of Children with Obesity for Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic Modeling

Clinical Pharmacokinetics February 2022

Gerhart JG, Carreno FO, Edginton AN, Sinha J, Perrin E, Kumar KR, Rikhi A, Hornik CP, Harris V, Ganguly S, Cohen-Wolkowiez M, Gonzalez D; on behalf of the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act — Pediatric Trials Network Steering Committee

 

A virtual population of children with obesity was developed using national survey, electronic health record, and clinical trial data, as well as data extracted from the literature. The objective of this study was to develop a virtual population of children with obesity to enable physiologically based pharmacokinetic modeling, then use the novel virtual population in conjunction with previously developed models of clindamycin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole to better understand dosing of these drugs in children with obesity. Model simulations supported current recommended weight-based dosing in children with obesity for clindamycin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, as they met target exposure despite these changes in clearance and volume of distribution.

 

 

Antibiotic Safety and Effectiveness in Premature Infants With Complicated Intraabdominal Infections

The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal June 2021

Smith MJ, Boutzoukas A, Autmizguine J, Hudak M, Zinkhan E, Bloom BT, Heresi G, Lavery A, Courtney S, Sokol GR, Cotton CM, Bliss J, Mendley S, Bendel C, Dammann C, Weitkamp JH, Saxonhouse MA, Mundakel GT, Debski J, Lewandowski A, Erinjeri J, Gao J, Benjamin DK, Hornik C, Smith PB, Cohen-Wolkowiez M, on behalf of the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act – Pediatric Trials Network

 

In premature infants, complicated intraabdominal infections (cIAIs) are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Although universally prescribed, the safety and effectiveness of commonly used antibiotic regimens have not been established in this population. One hundred eighty infants ≤33 weeks gestational age and <121 days postnatal age with cIAI were randomized to ≤10 days of ampicillin, gentamicin, and metronidazole (group 1); ampicillin, gentamicin, and clindamycin (group 2); or piperacillin-tazobactam and gentamicin (group 3). There were no differences in safety outcomes between antibiotic regimens. Each of the antibiotic regimens are safe in premature infants with cIAI.

 

 

Pharmacokinetics of Clindamycin in Obese and Nonobese Children

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy • March 2017.

Smith MJ, Gonzalez D, Goldman JL, Yogev R, Sullivan JE, Reed MD, Anand R, Martz K, Berezny K, Benjamin DK Jr, Smith PB, Cohen-Wolkowiez M, Watt K; Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act—Pediatric Trials Network Steering Committee.

Although obesity is prevalent among children in the United States, pharmacokinetic (PK) data for obese children are limited. Clindamycin is a commonly used antibiotic that may require dose adjustment in obese children due to its lipophilic properties. We performed a clindamycin population PK analysis using data from three separate trials. A total of 420 samples from 220 children, 76 of whom had a body mass index greater than or equal to the 95th percentile for age, were included in the analysis. Compared to other metrics, total body weight (TBW) was the most robust measure of body size.

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Clindamycin Pharmacokinetics and Safety in Preterm and Term Infants

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy • April 2016.

Gonzalez D, Delmore P, Bloom BT, Cotten CM, Poindexter BB, McGowan E, Shattuck K, Bradford KK, Smith PB, Cohen-Wolkowiez M, Morris M, Yin W, Benjamin DK Jr, Laughon MM.

Clindamycin may be active against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a common pathogen causing sepsis in infants, but optimal dosing in this population is unknown. We performed a multicenter, prospective pharmacokinetic (PK) and safety study of clindamycin in infants. We analyzed the data using a population PK analysis approach and included samples from two additional pediatric trials.

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Anaerobic antimicrobial therapy after necrotizing enterocolitis in VLBW infants

Pediatrics • January 2015.

Autmizguine J, Hornik CP, Benjamin DK Jr, Laughon MM, Clark RH, Cotten CM, Cohen-Wolkowiez M, Benjamin DK, Smith PB; Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act—Pediatric Trials Network Administrative Core Committee.

To evaluate the effect of anaerobic antimicrobial therapy for necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) on clinical outcomes in very low birth weight (≤1500 g) infants. We identified very low birth weight infants with NEC from 348 US NICUs from 1997 to 2012. Anaerobic antimicrobial therapy was defined by antibiotic exposure on the first day of NEC. We matched (1:1) infants exposed to anaerobic antimicrobial therapy with infants who were not exposed by using a propensity score stratified by NEC severity (medical and surgical).

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Use of opportunistic clinical data and a population pharmacokinetic model to support dosing of clindamycin for premature infants to adolescents

Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics • September 2014.

Gonzalez D, Melloni C, Yogev R, Poindexter BB, Mendley SR, Delmore P, Sullivan JE, Autmizguine J, Lewandowski A, Harper B, Watt KM, Lewis KC, Capparelli EV, Benjamin DK Jr, Cohen-Wolkowiez M; Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act – Pediatric Trials Network Administrative Core Committee.

Clindamycin is commonly prescribed to treat children with skin and skin-structure infections (including those caused by community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA)), yet little is known about its pharmacokinetics (PK) across pediatric age groups. A population PK analysis was performed in NONMEM using samples collected in an opportunistic study from children receiving i.v. clindamycin per standard of care.

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