Among biologics used for treating psoriasis, there do not appear to be differential risks for serious infection or respiratory tract infection, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. Investigators assessed the differential effect of biological therapies on the risk for serious infections and respiratory tract infections, including SARS-CoV-2 infections, among 714 patients with psoriasis who were treated with currently available biologics (1,325 treatment episodes) in a real-world setting. Crude rates of serious infection were highest for ixekizumab (6.04 per 100 patient-years [PYs]) and infliximab (4.01 per 100 PYs) and lowest for secukinumab (0.72 per 100 PYs). Rates of respiratory tract infection were highest for infliximab (72.20 per 100 PYs), etanercept (67.40 per 100 PYs), and ixekizumab (62.79 per 100 PYs), and lowest for secukinumab (48.71 per 100 PYs). There was no differential risk for either serious infection or respiratory tract infection between adalimumab, etanercept, infliximab, ustekinumab, secukinumab, ixekizumab, and guselkumab. The crude incidence rate of SARS-CoV-2 infections was 3.64 per 100 PY during 2020 in a single center.
