New Ointment Found Effective in Eczema Treatment

Eczema symptoms cleared faster and in more cases for patients treated with crisaborole topical ointment 2%, a novel non-steroidal phosphodiesterase inhibitor.

The findings were based on data presented at the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology’s (AAAAI) annual meeting in Los Angeles, CA this week.

Phase 3 results of the double-blind vehicle-controlled investigation sponsored by manufacturer Anacor Pharmaceuticals appear in the late-breaking abstracts supplement to AAAAI’s Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology for February 2016.

Two distinct groups of approximately 750 subjects aged two or older diagnosed with mild to moderate atopic dermatitis were randomized 2:1 to a daily course of topical anti-inflammatory or a control vehicle in a multi-site double blind study.

Severity of symptoms was evaluated at seven-day intervals over 29 days, using the Investigators Static Global Assessment (ISGA) scale.

At Day 29, more crisaborole-treated patients achieved ISGA success than those treated with vehicle (study 1: 32.8% vs 25.4%, P=0.038; study 2: 31.4% vs 18.0%, P<0.001) with a greater percentage of “almost clear/1” or “clear/0” ISGA scores (study 1: 51.7% vs 40.6%, P=0.005; study 2: 48.5% vs 29.7%, P<0.001), the researchers wrote in their study.

“Improvements in pruritus were achieved earlier with crisaborole than with vehicle—and getting relief from itching is so important for our patients — and a greater proportion of crisaborole-treated patients saw improvement for all clinical signs of atopic dermatitis by day 29,” said study lead author Mark Boguniewicz, MD, of the Division of Pediatric Allergy-Immunology at National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, CO.