Research Article: Safety profile of vunakizumab in elderly patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis: a post-hoc analysis
Abstract:
Elderly patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis are vulnerable to adverse events (AEs), which raise safety concerns in their management. This post-hoc analysis aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of vunakizumab in elderly patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, with an emphasis on safety.
Data were extracted from a phase III trial (NCT04839016). A total of 70 elderly patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis were included and assigned to the vunakizumab ( n =?49) and placebo ( n =?21) groups.
During the induction period, the incidence of any AEs (63.3% vs. 76.2%) ( p =?0.291) and serious AEs (4.1% vs. 0.0%) ( p =?1.000) did not differ between the vunakizumab and placebo groups. During the entire treatment period, the incidence of any AEs (87.8% vs. 90.5%) ( p =?1.000) and serious AEs (10.2% vs. 4.8%) ( p =?0.661) remained unchanged between the vunakizumab and placebo groups. In the vunakizumab group, the most frequent AEs during the entire treatment period were elevated blood glucose (22.4%), hypertriglyceridemia (12.2%), elevated blood cholesterol (10.2%), eczema (10.2%), hyperuricemia (10.2%), and upper respiratory tract infection (10.2%). The rates of patients achieving psoriasis area and severity index (PASI) 75, 90, 100, and static physician’s global assessment (sPGA) 0/1 responses at week (W) 12 were higher in the vunakizumab group than in the placebo group (all p <?0.001). These trends were sustained for 52?weeks. Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) at certain time points during 52?weeks were better in the vunakizumab group than in the placebo group.
Vunakizumab is safe and effective in elderly patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.
Introduction:
Psoriasis is a complex autoimmune skin disease, with the greatest disease burden among the elderly ( 1 ). Approximately 15% of elderly patients have moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, and systemic treatments are recommended for these patients ( 2–6 ). Nevertheless, elderly patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis are susceptible to adverse events (AEs) during systemic treatments, which can be attributed to age-related physiological changes leading to altered drug metabolism and a high prevalence of…
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