For adolescents and adults with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD), a monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-13, lebrikizumab (LEB), combined with topical corticosteroids (TCS), is associated with improved outcomes, according to a study published online Jan. 11 in JAMA Dermatology .

Eric L. Simpson, M.D., from the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, and colleagues examined the efficacy and safety of LEB combined with low- to mid-potency TCS in a 16-week trial conducted at 54 outpatient sites involving adolescents and adults with moderate-to-severe AD. A total of 211 patients were randomly assigned to LEB or placebo (PBO) in combination with TCS for 16 weeks in a 2:1 ratio.

The researchers found that the proportion of patients achieving an Investigator's Global Assessment score of 0 or 1 was 41.2 and 22.1 in the LEB TCS and PBO TCS groups, respectively; the corresponding proportions achieving a 75 percent improvement in the Eczema Area and Severity Index were 69.5 and 42.2 percent. Statistically significant improvement in all key secondary end points was seen for the LEB TCS group. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were mostly nonserious, were mild or moderate in severity, and did not lead to discontinuation in the study. Conjunctivitis, headache, hypertension, injection site reactions, and herpes infection were the TEAEs frequently reported in the LEB TCS group, and these TEAEs occurred less frequently in the PBO TCS group.

"Taken together, the efficacy and safety data reported herein suggest that LEB TCS may be an effective treatment option for adult and adolescent patients with moderate-to-severe AD," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to pharmaceutical companies, including Dermira, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly, which manufactures lebrikizumab and funded the study.

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