Key clinical point: Interruption of upadacitinib treatment caused rapid loss of skin clearance response and upadacitinib retreatment led to rapid recovery or improvement in the response in patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD).
Major finding: A dose of 30 mg upadacitinib vs placebo led to a 72.9% least-squares mean percentage improvement in the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) score by week 16, which decreased to 24.6% within 4 weeks of upadacitinib withdrawal; however, an 8-week rescue therapy (30 mg upadacitinib) improved the mean percentage EASI score (pre- vs post-therapy: 2.8% vs 84.7%).
Study details: This post hoc analysis of a phase 2b study included 167 patients with moderate-to-severe AD who were randomly assigned to receive upadacitinib (7.5, 15, or 30 mg) or placebo; at week 16, each group was reassigned to receive upadacitinib (same dose) or placebo, with rescue therapy (30 mg upadacitinib) initiated in those with < 50% EASI response at week 20.
Disclosures: This study was sponsored by AbbVie, Inc. Six authors declared being employees of or holding stock or stock options in AbbVie. Several authors reported ties with AbbVie and others.
Source: Guttman-Yassky E et al. Upadacitinib treatment withdrawal and retreatment in patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis: Results from a phase 2b, randomized, controlled trial. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2023 (Aug 1). doi: 10.1111/jdv.19391