Frontiers in Immunology (Sep 2024)

Efficacy and safety of switching to bilastine, an H1-antihistamine, in patients with refractory chronic spontaneous urticaria (H1-SWITCH): a multicenter, open-label, randomized, parallel-group comparative study

  • Atsushi Fukunaga,
  • Atsushi Fukunaga,
  • Yasumasa Kakei,
  • Yasumasa Kakei,
  • Sae Murakami,
  • Yuji Kan,
  • Koji Masuda,
  • Masatoshi Jinnin,
  • Ken Washio,
  • Hiroo Amano,
  • Tohru Nagano,
  • Akihisa Yamamoto,
  • Toshihiro Otsuka,
  • Shunsuke Takahagi,
  • Motoi Takenaka,
  • Naoko Ishiguro,
  • Koremasa Hayama,
  • Naoko Inomata,
  • Yukinobu Nakagawa,
  • Akiko Sugiyama,
  • Michihiro Hide,
  • Michihiro Hide

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2024.1441478
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 15

Abstract

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BackgroundFor treating patients with refractory chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) resistant to standard doses of 2nd generation H1-antihistamines (H1AH) the International and Japanese guidelines recommend increasing H1AH dose. The latter also recommends switching to a different H1AH. This study explored if the efficacy of the standard dose of bilastine 20 mg is non-inferior to that of double-dose of H1AH in patients with refractory CSU.MethodsThis phase IV, multicenter, open-label, randomized, parallel-group trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of switching treatment to bilastine compared to treatment with a 2-fold dose of H1AH in patients with CSU refractory to standard dose H1AH. The primary endpoint was the mean total symptom score (TSS) at Day 5-7 after the start of administration.ResultsTreatment efficacy and safety were evaluated in 128 patients (bilastine, n=64; 2-fold dose of H1AH, n=64). The mean TSS at Day 5-7 after the start of administration was smaller than the non-inferiority margin of 0.8, demonstrating non-inferiority of the bilastine switching group to the double-dose H1AH group (0.17 (95% CI -0.32, 0.67)). No difference in Japanese version of Epworth Sleepiness Scale (JESS), DLQI, and urticaria activity score over 7 consecutive days (UAS7) was observed between the two groups. There were no serious adverse events in either group. H1AH-related adverse events occurred in 5 subjects (8 cases) and 2 subjects (3 cases) in the double-dose H1AH and bilastine groups, respectively.ConclusionsSwitching treatment to bilastine demonstrated non-inferiority to a double-dose of H1AH in terms of efficacy in patients with CSU refractory to standard dose H1AH with a favorable safety profile.Clinical trial registrationhttps://jrct.niph.go.jp/latest-detail/jRCTs051180105, identifier jRCTs051180105.

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