Patient satisfaction with ExtaviPro™ 30G, a new auto-injector for administering interferon β-1b in multiple sclerosis: results from a real-world, observational EXCHANGE study

BACKGROUND Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) receiving long-term, subcutaneous interferon β-1b (IFN β-1b; Extavia®) often experience injection-site reactions and injection-site pain, which together with other side-effects (such as flu-like symptoms) result in suboptimal treatment compliance/adherence. The EXCHANGE study evaluated patient satisfaction with IFN β-1b treatment, administered using ExtaviPro™ 30G, a new auto-injector, in a real-world setting. METHODS This 26-week, open-label, prospective, non-interventional, observational, multi-country multi-centre study enrolled patients with MS who had been treated with IFN β-1b or other disease-modifying therapies with a self-administered auto-injector for ≥3 months and who were planned to switch to IFN β-1b treatment administered using ExtaviPro™ 30G as part of routine clinical care. Patient-reported outcomes included overall patient satisfaction (primary outcome) and satisfaction associated with treatment effectiveness, convenience and side-effects, assessed using Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire for Medication (TSQM)-14. The changes in TSQM scores from baseline to Week 26 were reported. All data were analysed using SAS statistical software (version 9.4). RESULTS Of the 336 patients enrolled, 324 were included in the analysis. At baseline, mean ± standard deviation (SD) age of patients was 41.8 ± 11.3 years and 68.2% were women. The mean ± SD of MS disease duration was 6.9 ± 6.6 years, and the majority of patients (94.1%) had relapsing-remitting MS. The mean ± SD of TSQM score for overall patient satisfaction at Week 26 was 75.6 ± 16.46 (baseline, 73.0 ± 17.14; p = 0.0342). The mean ± SD of TSQM subscale scores for patient satisfaction with effectiveness, side-effects and convenience were 75.0 ± 18.65 (baseline, 71.6 ± 19.45; p = 0.0356), 88.5 ± 18.98 (baseline, 82.7 ± 22.93; p = 0.0002) and 77.6 ± 16.72 (baseline, 71.1 ± 17.53; p < 0.0001), respectively. CONCLUSION The results from this real-world study suggest that administering IFN β-1b with the new ExtaviPro™ auto-injector significantly improves overall patient satisfaction, including satisfaction associated with effectiveness, side-effects and convenience in MS patients.