Differential effects of secukinumab vs. ustekinumab for treatment of psoriasis on quality of life, work productivity and activity impairment: a structural equation modelling analysis

Itch as a critical factor in impaired health-related quality of life in patients with plaque psoriasis achieving clear or almost-clear skin: Analysis of the single-arm, open-label, multicenter, prospective ProLOGUE study

Background

Patients with psoriasis report impaired health-related quality of life (HRQoL; Dermatology Life Quality Index score ≥ 2) even after achieving clear or almost-clear skin with biologic treatment.

Objective

To assess the effectiveness of brodalumab in HRQoL improvement and the factors associated with incomplete HRQoL improvement in Japanese patients with psoriasis.

Methods

As a part of the single-arm, open-label, multicenter, prospective ProLOGUE study (Japan Registry of Clinical Trials identifier: jRCTs031180037), patients were treated with 210 mg of subcutaneous brodalumab in daily clinical practice until week 48. The absolute Psoriasis Area and Severity Index scores and patient-reported outcomes were assessed at baseline and weeks 12 and 48.

Results

Seventy-three patients (male, 82.2%; median age, 54.0 years) were enrolled. The Dermatology Life Quality Index and European Quality of Life 5-Dimension 5-Level Utility Index scores significantly improved from baseline to weeks 12 and 48. At week 48, all 13 patients with a Dermatology Life Quality Index score of ≥2 and an absolute Psoriasis Area and Severity Index score of 0 to ≤2 reported itching.

Limitations

Unclear generalizability of the results to other biologics.

Conclusion

Treatment with brodalumab improved HRQoL in patients with psoriasis. Itching may contribute to incomplete HRQoL improvement in patients who have achieved clear or almost-clear skin.

Correlation Between Change in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index and Dermatology Life Quality Index in Patients with Psoriasis: Pooled Analysis from Four Phase 3 Clinical Trials of Secukinumab

INTRODUCTION

Patients with psoriasis (PsO) experience impaired health-related quality of life due to physical and psychosocial burdens. The objective of this study was to assess the correlation between change in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score and selected Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) domain scores in patients with moderate-to-severe PsO and those with PsO and comorbid psoriatic arthritis (PsA).

METHODS

This post hoc analysis of four phase 3 clinical trials included patients with moderate-to-severe PsO randomized to secukinumab 150/300 mg, etanercept, or placebo. Pairwise latent growth models were applied to assess the longitudinal correlation between change in PASI scores and changes in three DLQI domain scores (daily activities, leisure activities, and symptoms/feelings). The initial (baseline to week 12) and sustained (week > 12 to week 52) treatment exposures were analysed by population type (total, PsO only, and PsO with comorbid PsA) and treatment arm (secukinumab, etanercept, or placebo).

RESULTS

Among the total population (N = 2401), PASI change was positively correlated with change in each assessed DLQI domain; correlations were weak to moderate over the initial treatment exposure period (β range, 0.20-0.29; all P < 0.001) and moderate to strong over the sustained exposure period (β range, 0.63-0.69; all P < 0.001). Similar trends were observed regardless of the presence of comorbid PsA. These relationships were confirmed among patients treated with secukinumab, etanercept, or placebo.

CONCLUSIONS

Improvements in PASI scores were directly moderately related to improvements in DLQI domain scores from initiation of treatment and extended over time, regardless of presence of comorbid PsA or treatment received.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

ERASURE (NCT01365455), FIXTURE (NCT01358578), FEATURE (NCT01555125), and JUNCTURE (NCT01636687).

Psoriasis in difficult to treat areas: treatment role in improving health-related quality of life and perception of the disease stigma

Background: When psoriasis affects scalp, nails, palms and soles, it is considered difficult to treat and causes severe impairment of life quality.Objective: We evaluated which difficult site most impacts on the patient's quality of life and how quality of life changes during treatment.Methods: We conducted a prospective observational study in patients receiving adalimumab over a 24 weeks period, through assessment at weeks 0, 4 and 24 using PASI, PAIN VAS, ITCH VAS, DLQI, NAPSI, PSSI. Pearson correlation was used to evaluate the relationship between the various measurements on the basis of three different deltas (between T0 and T24, between T0 and T4, between T0 and average between T4 and T24)Results: The correlation matrix between T0 and T24 shows a significant correlation between delta PASI and delta ITCH and delta ITCH and delta DLQI and a significant correlation between ITCH delta and DLQI delta and a correlation close to significance between DLQI and NAPSI.Conclusion: We identified itching as a mediator between the cutaneous extension of psoriasis and the impact on quality of life. We also documented the predominant role of nail psoriasis in defining the impact on the quality of life of the psoriatic patient.

Efficacy and Safety of Ixekizumab Through 5 Years in Moderate-to-Severe Psoriasis: Long-Term Results from the UNCOVER-1 and UNCOVER-2 Phase-3 Randomized Controlled Trials

Introduction

Ixekizumab, a high-affinity monoclonal antibody that selectively targets interleukin-17A, is approved for treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Our objective was to evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of ixekizumab in moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis through 5 years.

Methods

Data were integrated from the UNCOVER-1 and UNCOVER-2, randomized, double-blinded, phase-3 trials. Patients who continuously received the labeled ixekizumab dose, were static Physician’s Global Assessment (sPGA) (0,1) responders at Week 12 and completed 60 weeks of treatment could enter the long-term extension (LTE) period. Patients could escalate to every-2-week dosing per investigator opinion. Efficacy and health outcomes included proportion of patients achieving Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) 75/90/100, sPGA (0,1) and (0), absolute PASI ≤ 5/ ≤ 3/ ≤ 2/ ≤ 1 and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) (0,1). Results exclude patients who escalated to every-2-week dosing. A modified non-responder imputation method was used to account for missing data. Supplemental analyses include patients who escalated to every-2-week dosing and observed and multiple imputation results. Exposure-adjusted safety outcomes are also reported.

Results

Of 206 patients who entered the LTE periods, 172 completed treatment. At Week 60, PASI 75/90/100 responses were 94.7%, 85.0% and 62.1%, respectively, and at year 5 were 90.3%, 71.3% and 46.3%, respectively. Similarly, meaningful responses were achieved for the other efficacy and health measures. Among patients with PASI 100 through 5 years, 92% achieved DLQI (0,1), indicating no impact of skin disease on quality of life. During the LTE period, exposure-adjusted incidence rates were 31.4 per 100 patient-years for treatment-emergent adverse events and 6.8 per 100 patient-years for serious adverse events. No deaths were reported. No new or unexpected safety findings were noted.

Conclusions

The results demonstrate 80 mg ixekizumab maintains long-term efficacy and a safety profile consistent with previous data in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis through 5 years of treatment.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier, UNCOVER-1: NCT01474512, UNCOVER-2: NCT01597245.

Electronic Supplementary Material

The online version of this article (10.1007/s13555-020-00367-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Proposal of a new scoring formula for the Dermatology Life Quality Index in psoriasis

BACKGROUND

'Not relevant' responses (NRRs) on the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) may occur in up to 40% of patients with psoriasis. As these responses are scored as the item of the questionnaire having no impact on the patients' lives at all, it is more difficult for these patients to fulfil the DLQI > 10 criterion required by clinical guidelines to become candidates for systemic treatment including biologics.

OBJECTIVES

We propose a new scoring system for the DLQI that corrects for the bias in the NRR option and test its construct validity in a sample of patients with psoriasis.

METHODS

Data from 242 patients (104 of whom marked at least one NRR) from two earlier cross-sectional surveys were reanalysed. For each patient, the DLQI score was calculated in two ways: (i) according to the original scoring and (ii) by applying a new scoring formula (DLQI-R) that adjusts the total score for the number of NRRs. The construct validity of the DLQI-R was tested against the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) and EQ-5D-3L.

RESULTS

The mean DLQI and DLQI-R scores were 9·99 ± 7·52 and 11·0 ± 8·02, respectively. The DLQI-R allowed eight more patients (3·3%) to achieve the 'PASI > 10 and DLQI > 10' threshold. The results were robust when limiting the maximum number of NRRs allowed to two or three. Compared with the DLQI, DLQI-R correlated slightly better with PASI (r_s = 0·59 vs. 0·57) and EQ-5D-3L index scores (r_s = -0·58 vs. -0·54).

CONCLUSIONS

The DLQI-R seems to be a valid scoring system for avoiding the bias in the NRR option and can help to improve patients' access to biologics.