PROGESTERONE

INDICATIONS AND USAGE Progesterone capsules are indicated for use in the prevention of endometrial hyperplasia in nonhysterectomized postmenopausal women who are receiving conjugated estrogens tablets. They are also indicated for use in secondary amenorrhea.

DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION Prevention of Endometrial Hyperplasia Progesterone capsules should be given as a single daily dose at bedtime, 200 mg orally for 12 days sequentially per 28-day cycle, to a postmenopausal woman with a uterus who is receiving daily conjugated estrogens tablets. Treatment of Secondary Amenorrhea Progesterone capsules may be given as a single daily dose of 400 mg at bedtime for 10 days. Some women may experience difficulty swallowing progesterone capsules. For these women, progesterone capsules should be taken with a glass of water while in the standing position.

WARNINGS See BOXED WARNING . 1. Cardiovascular Disorders An increased risk of pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), stroke, and myocardial infarction has been reported with estrogen plus progestin therapy. Should any of these occur or be suspected, estrogen with progestin therapy should be discontinued immediately. Risk factors for arterial vascular disease (for example, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, tobacco use, hypercholesterolemia, and obesity) and/or venous thromboembolism (for example, personal history or family history of venous thromboembolism [VTE], obesity, and systemic lupus erythematosus) should be managed appropriately. a. Stroke In the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) estrogen plus progestin substudy, a statistically significant increased risk of stroke was reported in women 50 years to 79 years of age receiving daily CE (0.625 mg) plus MPA (2.5 mg) compared to women in the same age group receiving placebo (33 versus 25 per 10,000 women-years). The increase in risk was demonstrated after the first year and persisted. (See CLINICAL STUDIES .) Should a stroke occur or be suspected, estrogen plus progestin therapy should be discontinued immediately. b. Coronary Heart Disease In the WHI estrogen plus progestin substudy, there was a statistically non-significant increased risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) events (defined as nonfatal myocardial infarction [MI], silent MI, or CHD death) reported in women receiving daily CE (0.625 mg) plus MPA (2.5 mg) compared to women receiving placebo (41 versus 34 per 10,000 women-years). An increase in relative risk was demonstrated in year 1 and a trend toward decreasing relative risk was reported in years 2 through 5. (See CLINICAL STUDIES .) In postmenopausal women with documented heart disease (n = 2,763, average age 66.7 years), in a controlled clinical trial of secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease (Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study [HERS]), treatment with daily CE (0.625 mg) plus MPA (2.5 mg) demonstrated no cardiovascular benefit. During an average follow-up of 4.1 years, treatment with CE plus MPA did not reduce the overall rate of CHD events in postmenopausal women with established coronary heart disease. There were more CHD events in the CE plus MPA-treated group than in the placebo group in year 1, but not during the subsequent years. Two thousand, three hundred and twenty-one (2,321) women from the original HERS trial agreed to participate in an open-label extension of HERS, HERS II. Average follow-up in HERS II was an additional 2.7 years, for a total of 6.8 years overall. Rates of CHD events were comparable among women in the CE plus MPA group and the placebo group in HERS, HERS II, and overall. c. Venous Thromboembolism In the WHI estrogen plus progestin substudy, a statistically significant 2-fold greater rate of VTE (DVT and pulmonary embolism [PE]) was reported in women receiving daily CE (0.625 mg) plus MPA (2.5 mg) compared to women receiving placebo (35 versus 17 per 10,000 women-years). Statistically significant increases in risk for both DVT (26 versus 13 per 10,000 women-years) and PE (18 versus 8 per 10,000 women-years) were also demonstrated. The increase in VTE risk was demonstrated during the first year and persisted. (See CLINICAL STUDIES .) Should a VTE occur or be suspected, estrogen plus progestin therapy should be discontinued immediately. If feasible, estrogens with progestins should be discontinued at least 4 to 6 weeks before surgery of the type associated with an increased risk of thromboembolism, or during periods of prolonged immobilization. 2. Malignant Neoplasms a. Breast Cancer The WHI substudy of daily CE (0.625 mg)- alone provided information about breast cancer in estrogen‑alone users. In the WHI estrogen-alone substudy, after an average of follow-up of 7.1 years, daily CE-alone was not associated with an increased risk of invasive breast cancer [relative risk (RR) 0.80] compared to placebo (see CLINIC…

CONTRAINDICATIONS Progesterone capsules should not be used in women with any of the following conditions: 1. Progesterone capsules should not be used in patients with known hypersensitivity to its ingredients. Progesterone capsules contain peanut oil and should never be used by patients allergic to peanuts. 2. Undiagnosed abnormal genital bleeding. 3. Known, suspected, or history of breast cancer. 4. Active deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism or history of these conditions. 5. Active arterial thromboembolic disease (for example, stroke and myocardial infarction), or a history of these conditions. 6. Known liver dysfunction or disease. 7. Known or suspected pregnancy.

E. Pregnancy Progesterone capsules should not be used during pregnancy. (See CONTRAINDICATIONS .) Reproductive studies have been performed in mice at doses up to 9 times the human oral dose, in rats at doses up to 44 times the human oral dose, in rabbits at a dose of 10 mcg/day delivered locally within the uterus by an implanted device, in guinea pigs at doses of approximately one-half the human oral dose and in rhesus monkeys at doses approximately the human dose, all based on body surface area, and have revealed little or no evidence of impaired fertility or harm to the fetus due to progesterone.

F. Nursing Women Detectable amounts of progestin have been identified in the milk of nursing women receiving progestins. Caution should be exercised when progesterone capsules are administered to a nursing woman.

ADVERSE REACTIONS See BOXED WARNING , WARNINGS and PRECAUTIONS. Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials of a drug cannot be directly compared to rates in the clinical trials of another drug and may not reflect the rates observed in practice. In a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, the effects of progesterone capsules on the endometrium was studied in a total of 875 postmenopausal women. Table 6 lists adverse reactions greater than or equal to 2 percent of women who received cyclic progesterone capsules 200 mg daily (12 days per calendar month cycle) with 0.625 mg conjugated estrogens or placebo. TABLE 6. Adverse Reactions (≥ 2%) Reported in an 875 Patient Placebo-Controlled Trial in Postmenopausal Women Over a 3-Year Period [Percentage (%) of Patients Reporting] Progesterone Capsules 200 mg with Conjugated Estrogens 0.625 mg Placebo (n = 178) (n = 174) Headache 31 27 Breast Tenderness 27 6 Joint Pain 20 29 Depression 19 12 Dizziness 15 9 Abdominal Bloating 12 5 Hot Flashes 11 35 Urinary Problems 11 9 Abdominal Pain 10 10 Vaginal Discharge 10 3 Nausea / Vomiting 8 7 Worry 8 4 Chest Pain 7 5 Diarrhea 7 4 Night Sweats 7 17 Breast Pain 6 2 Swelling of Hands and Feet 6 9 Vaginal Dryness 6 10 Constipation 3 2 Breast Carcinoma 2 <1 Breast Excisional Biopsy 2 <1 Cholecystectomy 2 <1 Effects on Secondary Amenorrhea In a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, the effects of progesterone capsules on secondary amenorrhea was studied in 49 estrogen-primed postmenopausal women. Table 7 lists adverse reactions greater than or equal to 5 percent of women who received progesterone capsules or placebo. TABLE 7. Adverse Reactions (≥ 5%) Reported in Patients Using 400 mg/day in a Placebo-Controlled Trial in Estrogen-Primed Postmenopausal Women Adverse Experience Progesterone Capsules 400 mg Placebo n = 25 n = 24 Percentage (%) of Patients Fatigue 8 4 Headache 16 8 Dizziness 24 4 Abdominal Distention (Bloating) 8 8 Abdominal Pain (Cramping) 20 13 Diarrhea 8 4 Nausea 8 0 Back Pain 8 8 Musculoskeletal Pain 12 4 Irritability 8 4 Breast Pain 16 8 Infection Viral 12 0 Coughing 8 0 In a multicenter, parallel-group, open label postmarketing dosing study consisting of three consecutive 28-day treatment cycles, 220 premenopausal women with secondary amenorrhea were randomized to receive daily conjugated estrogens therapy (0.625 mg conjugated estrogens) and progesterone capsules, 300 mg per day (n = 113) or progesterone capsules, 400 mg per day (n = 107) for 10 days of each treatment cycle. Overall, the most frequently reported treatment-emergent adverse reactions, reported in greater than or equal to 5 percent of subjects, were nausea, fatigue, vaginal mycosis, nasopharyngitis, upper respiratory tract infection, headache, dizziness, breast tenderness, abdominal distension, acne, dysmenorrhea, mood swing, and urinary tract infection. Postmarketing Experience: The following additional adverse reactions have been reported with progesterone capsules. Because these reactions are reported voluntarily from a population of uncertain size, it is not always possible to reliably estimate the frequency or establish a causal relationship to drug exposure. Genitourinary System: endometrial carcinoma, hypospadia, intra-uterine death, menorrhagia, menstrual disorder, metrorrhagia, ovarian cyst, spontaneous abortion. Cardiovascular: circulatory collapse, congenital heart disease (including ventricular septal defect and patent ductus arteriosus), hypertension, hypotension, tachycardia. Gastrointestinal: acute pancreatitis, cholestasis, cholestatic hepatitis, dysphagia, hepatic failure, hepatic necrosis, hepatitis, increased liver function tests (including alanine aminotransferase increased, aspartate aminotransferase increased, gamma‑-glutamyl transferase increased), jaundice, swollen tongue. Skin: alopecia, pruritus…