Dupilumab provides clinically meaningful responses in children aged 6–11 years with severe atopic dermatitis: post hoc analysis results from a phase III trial

Background: Children with severe atopic dermatitis (AD) have a multidimensional disease burden. Objective: Here we assess the clinically meaningful improvements in AD signs, symptoms, and quality of life (QoL) in children aged 6–11 years with severe AD treated with dupilumab compared with placebo. Methods: R668-AD-1652 LIBERTY AD PEDS was a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, phase III clinical trial of dupilumab with concomitant topical corticosteroids (TCS) in children aged 6–11 years with severe AD. This post hoc analysis focuses on 304 patients receiving either dupilumab or placebo with TCS and assessed the percentage of patients considered responsive to dupilumab treatment at week 16. Results: At week 16, almost all patients receiving dupilumab + TCS (95%) demonstrated clinically meaningful improvements in AD signs, symptoms, or QoL compared with placebo + TCS (61%, p < 0.0001). Significant improvements were seen as early as week 2 and sustained through the end of the study in the full analysis set (FAS) and the subgroup of patients with an Investigator’s Global Assessment score greater than 1 at week 16. Limitations: Limitations include the post hoc nature of the analysis and that some outcomes were not prespecified; the small number of patients in some subgroups potentially limits generalizability of findings. Conclusion: Treatment with dupilumab provides significant and sustained improvements within 2 weeks in AD signs, symptoms, and QoL in almost all children with severe AD, including those who did not achieve clear or almost clear skin by week 16. Trial Registration: NCT03345914. [MediaObject not available: see fulltext.]