Flexible-Dose Tavapadon for Parkinson’s Disease: A Randomized Trial

In patients with Parkinson’s disease, standard therapies of levodopa and D2/D3 dopamine agonists are highly efficacious but carry risks for adverse effects like excessive daytime sleepiness and impulse control disorders. To assess whether tavapadon, a non–FDA-approved, oral, D1/D5 dopamine agonist, might preserve motor efficacy with fewer adverse effects, the drug manufacturer sponsored a phase 3 trial.

Investigators randomized 300 adults with early Parkinson’s disease who were treatment-naive or minimally exposed to dopaminergic therapy to receive flexible-dose tavapadon (5–15 mg) or placebo once daily for 27 weeks.