title: The anti-IL-4 receptor alpha antibody dupilumab: facing a new era in treating atopic dermatitis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Atopic dermatitis is the most common chronic inflammatory skin disease with high prevalence rates in adults and even higher among children. For the numerous patients suffering from moderate to severe disease, standard systemic treatment regimens such as cyclosporine A, methotrexate or azathioprine are not suited for long-term treatment due to their unfavorable safety profile. A promising alternative would be the newly developed IL-4 receptor alpha antibody dupilumab which has been investigated in several clinical trials during the last years.
  
  
  METHODS
  Recently, four phase I and II studies have been published providing a favorable efficacy and safety profile. Clinical scores such as EASI were reduced by 74% after 12 weeks of treatment with early onset of first improvement after already one week. Safety data showed no evidence of drug-related serious adverse events and no organ toxicity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  First clinical data of treating AD with dupilumab provided strong evidence for a highly significant efficacy and safety. In the case, future phase III studies will confirm these findings, dupilumab has the potential to become a new first line standard treatment for patients with severe AD.
authors.affiliation: a University Hospital Muenster , Department of Dermatology , 48149 Muenster , Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tsianakas
authors.affiliation: a University Hospital Muenster , Department of Dermatology , 48149 Muenster , Germany.
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Luger
mesh_terms: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D001379:Azathioprine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D016572:Cyclosporine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011788:Quality of Life; D019948:Receptors, Interleukin-4 / Q000276:immunology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D019948:Receptors, Interleukin-4; C582203:dupilumab; D016572:Cyclosporine; D001379:Azathioprine; D008727:Methotrexate
keywords: IL-4 receptor alpha subunit; atopic dermatitis; dupilumab; pruritus; quality of life