Pernix Therapeutics Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PTX) has announced positive results, from a phase-IV study of Silenor and zolpidem. The study had been aimed at determining the effects on gait, arousability, balance and cognitive performance, in healthy male volunteers, if the drugs were administered as insomnia treatments during the night. The company presented the data at the SLEEP 2016 International Meeting, which was held in Denver, Colorado, from June 14 to 15.
The study observed a population of 52 healthy male adults, who demonstrated statistically significant superiority for Silenor, as compared to zolpidem. Furthermore, the results also showed that Silenor did not impair the gait, performance, cognitive abilities of the patients, producing comparable results to that of the placebo group. Finally, the results also showed that there was no difference in efficacy, between 10mg administration of zolpidem and 6mg administration of Silenor. However, several measures did show improvement with Silenor.
Heith Durrence, the Medical Director and Pernix, stated that one of the interesting things observed in the study was that patients who were administered zolpidem, were unable to wake-up, unless they were exposed to noise louder than 110 dB. He further clarified that this meant that patients who took zolpidem were unable to wake up, even if a jackhammer was operating near them.
Pernix has been attracting a significant amount of attention from investors, during the past few trading sessions. One notable investor to raise his stake in the company is Steven Cohen, who currently holds around 1.224 million shares of PTX, after having raised it by 49%. Although the change was made on April 28, the news has only recently surfaced. Analysts believe that this is mainly due to the company reporting its highest revenues, since inception and its rapid expansion during the FY2015, while improving its gross profit margins.
Pernix Therapeutics Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PTX) gained 12.52% in terms of share value, during the June 16 trading session, to reach a close at $0.505 per share. The stock had a trade volume of 13.74 million.
