Ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid treatment in Huntington's disease: A placebo-controlled clinical trial.

BACKGROUND:

It has been suggested that treatment with ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) may improve motor function in patients with Huntington's disease (HD) with cytosine-adenine-guanine repeat numbers of <45.

METHODS:

This multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled 6-month trial compared the effects of ethyl-EPA versus placebo on 290 subjects with mild-to-moderate HD. The primary endpoint was the change from baseline to 6 months in the Total Motor Score 4 (TMS-4) component of the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS). Secondary endpoints included change from baseline in UHDRS subscores and Clinical Global Impression (CGI).

RESULTS:

No significant differences in TMS-4 scores were noted between treatment groups. Similarly, there were no significant differences between groups on any of the UHDRS subscores or CGI scores.

CONCLUSION:

Ethyl-EPA was not beneficial in patients with HD during 6 months of placebo-controlled evaluation.