A phase 2b clinical trial of RTB101, an orally administered drug, was shown to reduce respiratory tract infections in patients over age 65, resTORbio Inc. announced.
Data was presented at American Thoracic Society Conference in Dallas.
“These data presented at ATS show that RTB101 may reduce the incidence of respiratory tract infections caused by multiple viruses, most of which lack current treatments,” said William W. Busse, M.D., Professor of Medicine, Allergy, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Wisconsin. “These findings are particularly encouraging in efforts to prevent not only respiratory infections in high-risk elderly asthma patients, but also the consequences of these illnesses — asthma exacerbations.”
Seniors with asthma often experience exacerbations and hospitalizations during the winter. Treatment of RTB101 10 mg once daily for 16 weeks during winter cold and flu season reduced the RTIs rate by nearly 69%, based on laboratory confirmation compared to the placebo.
RTIs are the fourth leading cause of hospitalization and seventh leading cause of death in people 65 years of age and older, the company noted.
