Concomitant use of dupilumab with glucocorticoid in bullous pemphigoid reduces disease severity: A preliminary study

OBJECTIVE: To retrospectively analyze the efficacy and safety of dupilumab in the treatment of bullous pemphigoid. METHODS: From October 2020 to October 2022, the medical records of patients with bullous pemphigoid who were treated with dupilumab in our department were collected retrospectively to analyze the therapeutic effect and changes in laboratory indexes. RESULTS: The records of a total of 11 patients with bullous pemphigoid who were treated with dupilumab was reviewed. Within 2 weeks of the treatment, 10 (90.9%) of the 11 patients had complete or substantial control of the disease. The BPDAI scores of the patients decreased from baseline 113 (62, 181) to 37 (6, 130) at 2 weeks (p = .001) and 4 (0, 37) at 12 weeks after treatment (p < .001). In the 11 patients treated with dupilumab, the relief time of pruritus was 0–3 days (0.5, 7) days, and the pruritus was significantly alleviated after 2 weeks (t = 15.925, p < .001). The DLQI score decreased from (25.5 ± 2.5) before treatment, to (11.8 ± 4.4) at 2 weeks (t = 10.764, p < .001) and (2.1 ± 1.9) at 12 weeks (t = 30.038, p < .001). The patients had high eosinophil counts, high serum IgE levels, low serum total protein levels, and abnormal blood coagulation function. The aforementioned indicators gradually returned to normal after treatment. No adverse reactions occurred during the treatment. CONCLUSION: Dupilumab can effectively control the condition of bullous pemphigoid, efficiently relieve pruritus symptoms, and is relatively safe.