Clinical Response and Quality of Life in Patients with Severe Atopic Dermatitis Treated with Dupilumab: A Single-Center Real-Life Experience

Abstract

Dupilumab is an anti-interleukin-4 receptor monoclonal antibody that was recently approved for the treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD). In this single-center retrospective study, clinical baseline data of 117 severe AD patients treated with dupilumab were collected. At baseline and at weeks 4 and 16, disease severity was assessed through the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) and quality of life through the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) questionnaire, Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Peak Pruritus Numerical Rating Scale (NRS-itch), and VAS-sleep. Response to dupilumab was defined as an improvement of ≥75% in EASI from baseline (EASI75). At multivariate analysis, AD onset before 18 years [OR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.2−7.2; p = 0.0207] and absence of hypereosinophilia [OR, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.03−4.86; p = 0.0412] were identified as significant predictive parameters for response to dupilumab in terms of EASI75 at week 4 but not at week 16. Significant reductions in EASI, DLQI, POEM, HADS, NRS-itch, and VAS-sleep were found between week 4 versus baseline (p < 0.0001 for all) and week 16 versus baseline (p < 0.0001 for all). Early AD onset and absence of hypereosinophilia may be suggested as predictive markers of early response to dupilumab. We confirmed the efficacy and safety of this agent along with the improvement of life quality in severe AD patients.

Keywords

• atopic dermatitis
• dupilumab
• quality of life
• disease severity