26-Week Open-Label Extension Study Evaluating the Safety and Tolerability of Flexible Doses of Oral Ziprasidone in Children and Adolescents with Bipolar I Disorder (Most Recent Episode Manic).

Objective

To describe the longer-term effectiveness, safety, and tolerability of open-label ziprasidone in children and adolescents with bipolar I disorder (BD-I).

Methods

A subset of 23 participants aged 10-17 years, who were previously treated in a multi-site, 4-week randomized controlled trial received open-label ziprasidone (20-80 mg twice a day) for up to 26 weeks.

Results

The most common adverse events (AEs) were fatigue (30%), somnolence (17%), and nausea (13%). Effects on weight, body mass index, and metabolic parameters (glucose, cholesterol, and triglycerides) were minimal. No participant had a Fridericia-corrected QT interval ≥ 460 msec or a change from baseline of ≥60 msec, and there were no cardiac-related AEs. Both the participants who continued ziprasidone and those who initiated ziprasidone in the open-label extension showed improvements in their symptoms of mania.

Conclusions

The overall findings of the study are consistent with the accumulating knowledge on the safety profile of ziprasidone in the acute and long-term treatment of children and adolescents with BD-I, in the midst of a manic episode. ClinicalTrial.gov ID: NCT03768726.