Association of Ruxolitinib Cream Initiation With Continued Reduction in Use of Other Topical Treatments, Oral Corticosteroids, and Biologics for Atopic Dermatitis

Abstract

The objective of this analysis was to examine the impact of ruxolitinib cream on the use of other treatments for atopic dermatitis (AD). This study used claims data from the Healthcare Integrated Research Database (HIRD^®) to identify new users of ruxolitinib cream from October 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022. The index date was the date of the first claim for ruxolitinib cream. The baseline period was the 6-month period before the index date, and the follow-up period was 12 months after the index date, which was divided into months 1–6 and months 7–12. Use of other topical and systemic therapies for AD were descriptively analyzed. Among 556 ruxolitinib cream users with follow-up data, the mean number of ruxolitinib cream fills in the overall 12-month follow-up period was 2.1 (SD, 1.77; range, 1–12). The mean (SD) patient age was 40.3 (17.32) years. In months 1–6 and 7–12, 39.9% and 37.4% of patients were treated with ruxolitinib cream monotherapy, respectively; 72.5% and 73.9% of patients did not receive a new class of AD treatment during the respective follow-up periods. Topical corticosteroid use in patients was reduced from 53.4% at baseline to 31.3% in months 1–6 and 26.6% in months 7–12. Topical calcineurin inhibitor use decreased from 14.9% at baseline to 5.2% in months 1–6 and 5.0% in months 7–12. Similarly, topical phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitor use decreased from 6.7% at baseline to 3.4% in months 1–6 and 1.6% in months 7–12. The mean cumulative prednisone-equivalent dose was also reduced from 83.9 mg during the baseline period to 58.0 mg for months 1–6 and 47.3 mg for months 7–12. For patients who did not receive AD biologic therapy during the baseline period (n=431), 92.3% in months 1–6 and 91.4% in months 7–12 continued to remain off AD biologic therapy. Among patients who received AD biologics at baseline (n=125), 16.0% did not receive them in months 1–6 and 26.4% did not receive them in months 7–12. In conclusion, following initiation of ruxolitinib cream, there was a continued reduction in use of other topical therapies and oral corticosteroids for AD. Most biologic-naive patients (>90%) avoided biologics in the 12 months following ruxolitinib cream initiation. Approximately 1 in 4 patients who had biologic treatment during baseline did not continue biologic use in months 7–12. This 12-month analysis confirms earlier 6-month findings that indicated treatment with ruxolitinib cream may reduce the use of other topical therapies, oral corticosteroids, and biologics in patients with AD. (Funding, Incyte Corporation)