Hereditary angioedema due to C1 inhibitor deficiency: real-world experience from the Icatibant Outcome Survey in Spain

BACKGROUND: The Icatibant Outcome Survey (IOS) is an international registry monitoring the use of icatibant, a bradykinin B(2) receptor antagonist indicated for the acute treatment of hereditary angioedema (HAE) attacks. Our goal was to assess disease characteristics and icatibant treatment outcomes in patients with HAE due to C1 inhibitor deficiency (HAE type 1 or 2 (HAE-1/2)) from Spain relative to other countries participating in IOS. METHODS: Descriptive retrospective analyses of data are reported from 10 centers in Spain vs 51 centers in 12 other participating countries (July 2009 to January 2019). RESULTS: No meaningful differences were identified between patients in Spain (n = 119) and patients across other countries (n = 907) regarding median age at symptom onset (15.0 vs 12.0 years) or diagnosis (22.3 vs 20.5 years). Overall HAE attack rates (total attacks/total years of follow-up) were 2.66 in Spain and 1.46 across other countries. Patients in Spain reported fewer severe/very severe HAE attacks before treatment (41.0% vs 45.9%; P < 0.0001) and, for icatibant-treated attacks, longer median time to treatment (2.9 vs 1.0 h), time to attack resolution (18.0 vs 5.5 h), and total attack duration (24.6 vs 8.0 h). Use of androgens for long-term prophylaxis was higher in Spain (51.2% vs 26.7%). CONCLUSION: Patients with HAE-1/2 in Spain reported fewer severe/very severe attacks, administered icatibant later, and had longer-lasting attacks than did patients across other countries in IOS. These differences may indicate varying disease management practices (e.g., delayed icatibant treatment) and reporting. Efforts to raise awareness on the benefits of early on-demand treatment may be warranted. Trial registration: NCT01034969. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13223-021-00641-3.