Interleukin-17 vs. Interleukin-23 Inhibitors in Pustular and Erythrodermic Psoriasis: A Retrospective, Multicentre Cohort Study

Pustular and erythrodermic psoriasis are rare and difficult-to-treat conditions. It has recently been shown that interleukin (IL)-17 inhibitors can be very effective among patients with these forms of psoriasis; however, the potential of IL-23 inhibitors is largely unknown. The aim of this multicentre, retrospective study was to compare the safety, effectiveness, and drug survival of IL-17 and IL-23 inhibitors among patients affected by these rare forms of psoriasis. The study involved 27 patients with erythrodermic psoriasis and 59 with pustular psoriasis (36 with generalised pustular psoriasis and 23 with palmoplantar pustular psoriasis) treated with an IL-17 or IL-23 inhibitor. The effectiveness of the two drug classes was assessed using the disease-specific Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) and the Investigator Global Assessment, which were evaluated at different time points. There was a consistent trend towards a higher rate of PASI 100 responses in the patients treated with IL-17 inhibitors compared with those treated with IL-23 inhibitors, and the other efficacy outcomes showed a similar trend. There was no significant between-drug class difference in efficacy at any of the time points in the erythrodermic psoriasis cohort, whereas PASI 90 and PASI 100 response rates were significantly higher among the pustular psoriasis patients receiving IL-17 inhibitors at week 12 (IL-23 19% vs. IL-17 54% and IL-23 6% vs. IL-17 40%, respectively) and the percentage of responders to IL-17 inhibition was significantly higher at week 24 (IL-23 25% vs. IL-17 74%). In conclusion, it is therefore reasonable to assume that IL-17 and IL-23 inhibitors are both effective when treating pustular and erythrodermic psoriasis.