Biologic Therapy Utilization in Patients With Moderate to Severe Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis: An Observational Summary of Biologic Therapy Use in a Clinical Setting

Usage and Adherence of Seven Advanced Therapies with Differing Mechanisms of Action for Inflammatory Arthritis in Canada

Introduction

This retrospective, observational study aimed to analyze and assess adherence, persistence, dosing, and use of concomitant medications of seven self-administered target drugs (abatacept, golimumab, secukinumab, tocilizumab, ustekinumab, apremilast, and tofacitinib) that are currently available in Canada for the treatment of inflammatory arthritis (IA).

Methods

We used IQVIA’s longitudinal claims databases, which include private drug plans and public plans. Patients with IA identified using a proprietary indication algorithm who initiated treatment with any of the target drugs between January 2015 and February 2019 were selected and followed for 12 months.

Results

Golimumab and apremilast had the highest proportion of patients (~ 75%) who were bio-naïve and secukinumab had the fewest bio-naïve patients (~ 43%). The oral therapies, apremilast and tofacitinib, had the lowest percentage of adherent patients (73% and 71%) followed by abatacept (83%), while the remaining drugs had adherence around 90%. Secukinumab and tofacitinib had the highest 12-month persistence rate (63% and 61%), while abatacept and apremilast had the lowest persistence rate (52% and 47%). Oral corticosteroid (OCS) use was not significantly associated with adherence. Tocilizumab, secukinumab, and ustekinumab had the highest proportion of patients (> 20%) with dose escalation at 3–4 months from index. OCS and conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (cDMARD) use decreased in post-index period across all target drugs.

Conclusion

This study identified substantial differences in patient baseline characteristics. Patients on injectable biologics were more likely to be adherent compared with those on oral drugs, possibly owing to longer dosing intervals. Other outcomes at 12 months appeared similar as evidenced by tapering of concomitant medications, although differences in persistence and dose escalation were noted.

Certolizumab Pegol Use in the Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Psoriasis: Real-World Data From Two Canadian Centers

BACKGROUND

Certolizumab pegol (CZP) is a TNF-ɑ inhibitor used to treat moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis (PsO) in adult patients, including women of childbearing potential (WOCBP) and patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA). There are currently limited real-world data on CZP for treatment of PsO.

OBJECTIVES

To examine the use of CZP for treatment of PsO in clinical practice at two dermatology clinics in Canada.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective chart analysis of 59 patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis receiving CZP. Clinical efficacy was measured using the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI), Body Surface Area (BSA), and Physician Global Assessment (PGA). Drug survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier plots.

RESULTS

Of the 59 patients, 36 (61%) were female, of whom 23 (63.9%) were WOCBP. Twenty-three (39.0%) patients received CZP as their first biologic treatment. The main reasons for choosing CZP were its efficacy in both PsO and PsA, and for WOCBP due to little or no cross-placental transfer. Improvement of symptoms was observed after 3 months of treatment and was maintained for the 12-month analysis period. After 12 months of treatment, the patients' mean PASI score decreased from 13.0 (±5.8) at baseline to 2.3 (±4.3), mean BSA score from 13.1% (±6.7%) to 1.7% (±2.6%), and mean PGA score from 3.0 (±0.6) to 0.8 (±0.6). Overall CZP drug survival rate was 76.3% at 12 months, with no difference between biologic-naive and biologic-experienced patients.

CONCLUSIONS

CZP was effective and well tolerated in this cohort of patients with moderate-to-severe PsO in a real-world setting.

Dose Adjustment of Biologic Treatments for Moderate-to-Severe Plaque Psoriasis in the Real World: A Systematic Review

INTRODUCTION

Dose escalation and reduction of biologic treatments are frequent in clinical practice. The aim of this systematic review is to summarise evidence on dose adjustment of biologic treatments for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in the real-world.

METHODS

A systematic review of real-world evidence on dose adjustment of biologics for plaque psoriasis was performed. Searches were conducted in BIOSIS Previews^®, Embase^®, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, MEDLINE^®, and SciSearch^® in March 2020. Real-world studies that reported biologic dose adjustment for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis were included.

RESULTS

The search identified 162 papers, and 20 studies with 30,912 patients were included from 2014 to 2020. More studies reported on dose escalation than dose reduction. For adalimumab, 3-54% of patients had dose reduction while 0-37% had dose escalation. For infliximab, only two studies reported a dose reduction, with rates of 22-29%, while dose escalation rates varied from 14 to 67%. Dose reduction rates of 5-49% were reported for etanercept while 0-55% of patients had doses escalated. For ustekinumab, dose escalation and reduction rates ranged from 3 to 37% and 7 to 42%, respectively. Two studies reported on dose adjustment for secukinumab; in one 52% of patients initiated on 150 mg instead of the recommended 300 mg, while another reported no dose increase.

CONCLUSIONS

Dose adjustment of biologics for psoriasis is common, with escalation more frequently reported than reduction. Dose escalation may have economic and safety consequences, while dose reduction may impact efficacy. These aspects are important to consider when making decisions on treatment dosing.

A Controlled Study of the Feasibility and Efficacy of a Cloud-Based Interactive Management Program Between Patients with Psoriasis and Physicians

BACKGROUND Dermatology patients continue to receive improved treatment, but for patients with psoriasis, there have been few studies on ways to improve patient management by improving communication with patients and their dermatologists. This study aimed to investigate the feasibility and efficacy of cloud-based interactive patient and physician management of psoriasis. MATERIAL AND METHODS The cloud-based platform was created by professional software engineers to educate and manage patients with psoriasis in a single hospital, where patients and research staff had a network platform for sharing data. A total of 79 patients with psoriasis were included in this study and were randomly divided into the control group (n=39) and the intervention group (n=40). Patients in the control group were given a psoriasis nursing manual and underwent regular follow-up. Patients in the intervention group were managed using the cloud platform, with the same management as the control group. The Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI), the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), and the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) were used. RESULTS Cloud-based interactive patient and physician management resulted in clinical improvement, and reduced the degree of anxiety in patients with psoriasis and improved their physical and mental health. Patients in the intervention group had an improved understanding of psoriasis treatment, resulting in an improved relationship with the medical staff and improved treatment compliance. CONCLUSIONS Cloud-based interactive patient and physician management improved the mental health and quality of life for patients with psoriasis and allowed patients to manage their disease more effectively.