Summary: Avadel Pharmaceuticals and nference published real-world data identifying the top 20 comorbidities in over 2,000 people with narcolepsy, revealing that psychiatric, sleep, and pain disorders were most common, while cardiovascular diseases were notably absent. Conducted with the Mayo Clinic Platform, this analysis provides insights into the unique health challenges faced by narcolepsy patients, aiming to enhance treatment approaches.
Key Takeaways:
- Key Comorbidities Identified: Psychiatric, sleep, and pain disorders emerged as the most common comorbidities in people with narcolepsy.
- Absence of Cardiovascular Disease: Unlike previous studies, cardiovascular diseases did not appear in the top 20 comorbidities among narcolepsy patients.
- Real-World Data Advantage: The study used aggregate electronic health records, offering a comprehensive view beyond claims data.
Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc and nference, a health tech company dedicated to making biomedical data computable, announced the publication of real-world data that has identified the demographic characteristics and the top 20 most prevalent comorbidities of people living with narcolepsy.
The paper was published online in Sleep Advances. These real-world findings were previously presented at the American Neurological Association Annual Meeting in October 2022.
Results describing demographic characteristics and the top 20 comorbidities were based on a review of deidentified electronic health data from more than 2,000 people with narcolepsy and 2,000 matched controls.
The retrospective analysis was conducted through Mayo Clinic Platform, which leverages nference’s AI software to provide access to curated, deidentified electronic health data in a secure, privacy-protected environment. These types of data provide a more comprehensive view of patient information than claims data alone.
Findings and Implications
The study found that people with narcolepsy were more likely to have psychiatric, sleep, and pain disorders. Among the top 20 comorbidities, five disorders were related to various types of pain. Surprisingly, cardiovascular diseases, including hypertension, were not among the top 20 comorbidities.
“This is the first real-world study in narcolepsy to use aggregate electronic health record data,” says Melissa Lipford, MD, a neurologist at the Center for Sleep Medicine at Mayo Clinic and lead author of the paper, in a release. “…Understanding which comorbid conditions are most common should help clinicians better understand the challenges faced by patients with narcolepsy and help them optimize the management of their symptoms with the most appropriate treatment.”
Jennifer Gudeman, PharmD, senior vice president of medical and clinical affairs of Avadel, adds in a release, “We were proud to collaborate with Mayo Clinic Platform and nference to generate these real-world deidentified data from patients seen at the Mayo Clinic Health System. Narcolepsy is a chronic and complex neurological disorder, and understanding the most prevalent comorbidities increased in this patient population may help to inform optimal management. In contrast to claims-based studies, cardiovascular disease was not among the top 20 comorbidities found to be increased in the narcolepsy cohort compared to the matched cohort.”
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