There ought to be a few of these left around in Georgia..................
Posted on 09/23/2022 11:33:30 AM PDT by Red Badger
Eczema (or atopic dermatitis) affects millions of people, particularly children under the age of six.
The chronic inflammatory skin disorder causes the skin to go red and dry and to start oozing and itching, making life very uncomfortable.
There's currently no cure for the condition, just ways of managing it – but an existing drug is incredibly effective at reducing the signs and symptoms of eczema in kids under six with moderate to severe cases of the disorder.
It's the first time a complex biologic drug like this has been tested on this age group.
The drug in question is dupilumab. In a new study, 162 North American and European kids between the ages of 6 months and 6 years with moderate-to-severe eczema were given dupilumab or a placebo across the course of 16 weeks.
More than half of the kids given the drug showed a 75 percent reduction in symptom severity. Itchiness was significantly reduced, and the kids could sleep much better.
"Preschoolers who are constantly scratching, awake multiple times a night with their parents, irritable and markedly curtailed in their ability to do what other children their ages can do, improved to the extent that they sleep through the night, change their personalities and have a normal life – as babies and children should," says dermatologist Amy Paller from Northwestern University in Illinois.
Dupilumab targets an important immune inflammation pathway in allergies and is already used to treat eczema in older children and adults, as well as asthma, nasal polyps, and other allergy-mediated problems.
Until now, it hadn't been approved as safe or confirmed to be effective for those under the age of six – around 19 percent of this demographic are thought to have eczema, while 85-90 percent of those who develop eczema in their lives see the first signs of it before the age of five.
Around a third of this age group with eczema have a moderate to severe case of the disorder, with accompanying itchiness that is debilitating: These kids can't sleep properly, which has all kinds of knock-on effects and consequences.
While immune-suppressing medications such as oral steroids are often used for severe cases of eczema, there are concerns over their suitability for young children – both in terms of the short-term side effects and the long-term health complications, according to Paller.
"The group in whom we worry the most about safety – those under five – had not been tested and were unable to get [dupilumab]," says Paller. "The effect for most of these younger children is dramatic and at least as good as we've seen with the risky immunosuppressant medications."
Dupilumab already has a safety profile marked as "outstanding", and no further laboratory tests are necessary. It's now available to children as young as 6 months, and either a parent or healthcare professional can administer the drug through a monthly shot.
Moreover, the researchers think it could also have preventative effects. Because it takes such an aggressive approach to calming the immune system's inflammation response, there's a good chance it might also protect against other allergic issues developing later in life.
Dupilumab might even prove useful in dealing with other health issues in younger kids, the researchers suggest – although further studies are going to be necessary to establish how else it could be effective.
"The ability to take this drug will significantly improve the quality of life for infants and young children who suffer tremendously with this disease," says Paller.
"Atopic dermatitis or eczema is so much more than just itchy skin. It is a devastating disease. The quality of life of severe eczema – not only for the child but also parents – is equivalent to many life-threatening diseases."
The research was sponsored by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Sanofi, who jointly developed dupilumab, and the study has been published in The Lancet.
This is great. Thanks for posting.
Scale? She uses the weigh station.
There ought to be a few of these left around in Georgia..................
Want...
Those of us that have atopic dermatitis are aware of the pitfalls, frustrations, and the overall failure of the medical field to understand the way the illness happens. It took them well more than 50 years to determine it is being caused not by the skin, but by the immune system.
I’ve had it since I was under 5 years old and have been through the gauntlet of moisturizing topical creams like hydrocortisone and oral medications like prednisone that are there to put out fires and have done a poor job attaining cure. And all of them have their own baggage to hand to you.
I’ve been on a barrage of by-weekly injections of dupixent, an offshoot of dupilumab, since January of this year, and am now free of major problems with the scaling and open wounds that lead to infection and cellulitis that has cause me numerous hospitalizations.
There are adjustments to make, especially since I am diabetic and do not get good blood flow to my legs, but with the assistance of a cane, and the supplementation of moisturizing creams at first notice along with a podiatrist monthly inspections, it has been a Godsend. If you are cursed with this illness, I recommend dupixent’s use and a little effort to keep diligent and I think you will be pleased with the result.
But I might warn you, this injectable is far from inexpensive so get ready to spend some dime. Good luck.
wy69
Thanks for posting. I don’t know anyone with this issue in RL.
I have atopic dermatitis. Wheat triggers it. So I read labels and 100% stay away from wheat and the atopic dermatitis stays in check. It takes a few months to get out of your system.
In most cases that price is for 2 weeks.
I know they have a right to recoup their research costs and all, but if it’s just renaming another drug that was developed for some other purpose and already on the market for years?..............
I think the FDA approved it in 2017.
“... but an existing drug is incredibly effective at ...”
So, this article is saying that an existing drug for some other malady, is effectively treating this particular malady.
So, maybe a horse dewormer could possibly be effective against some non-horse malady?
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