Biologic ‘linked to milder COVID-19 symptoms’
A study including dupilumab users is reassuring for patients exposed to the pandemic virus, dermatologists say
Patients treated with dupilumab for atopic dermatitis who get COVID-19 may have milder symptoms than those given other systemic treatments or no treatment, US researchers report.
The results of the study in more than 1200 patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) should reassure treating doctors, says lead study author, Dr Benjamin Ungar of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.
The team analysed data from patients with moderate to severe AD listed in the hospital’s dermatology department registry.
The patients had been screened for COVID-19-related symptoms and assigned a severity score between zero (asymptomatic) and five (fatal). However, most patients in the study had not received a positive diagnosis of COVID-19.
