Selexipag for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension

Introduction : Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a rare pulmonary vasculopathy. This review focuses on selexipag, a prostacyclin receptor agonist validated for the treatment of PAH. Areas covered We review the structure, mechanisms of action, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of selexipag. Clinical efficacy and tolerability are discussed using the main clinical trial published for selexipag (GRIPHON) and its post-hoc analysis. Expert opinion Selexipag should be added as a triple oral combination therapy in case of insufficient response to oral combination therapy with endothelin receptor antagonist and phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor. However, selexipag should not replace parenteral prostacyclin in high-risk patients.

Automated summary

Selexipag is a validated prostacyclin receptor agonist for the treatment of PAH, which can be used as a triple oral combination therapy. It is recommended to add selexipag in case of insufficient response to oral combination therapy, but it should not replace parenteral prostacyclin in high-risk patients.