Mepolizumab demonstrates high clinical efficacy in both allergic and non-allergic Asthma

A new study revealed that mepolizumab is clinically very effective for the treatment of severe allergic and non-allergic phenotypes of asthma. The study results were published in the journal Annals of Allergy, Asthma, Immunology. 

Mepolizumab's efficacy is based on eosinophilia, which serves as a basis for overlapping allergic and non-allergic asthma phenotypes. While the efficacy and safety of mepolizumab in severe asthma are well-known, there is limited data on the comparative effectiveness among allergic and non-allergic phenotypes of asthma. Hence researchers conducted a retrospective cohort study to compare the impact of treatment with mepolizumab on patients with allergic versus non-allergic asthma.  

The study was carried out from January 2016–December 2019 using administrative claims data from Optum Research Database. Participants included patients having asthma for >=6 years and were initiated on mepolizumab. Both during the baseline period which was 12 months before mepolizumab initiation and during the follow-up period which is 12 after the initiation, asthma exacerbation rate and OCS use were assessed. Allergic status was ascertained using diagnosis codes, medication use and lab test results. 

Results:

• Eligibility criteria were met by a total of 240 (44.6%) allergic and 298 (55.4%) non-allergic asthma patients.
• For both allergic asthma (3.19 to 2.10) and non-allergic asthma patients (2.51 to 1.70), the mean asthma exacerbation rate was significantly reduced from baseline to follow-up.
• The mean count of OCS claims from baseline to follow-up has shown a significant reduction for patients with allergic (5.19 to 3.46) and non-allergic asthma (5.46 to 3.20).
• There were no noticeable significant differences between cohorts in the decreases in asthma exacerbations or counts of OCS claims from baseline to follow-up. 

Thus, the study shows the real-world effectiveness of Mepolizumab for the treatment of severe asthma with allergic and non-allergic phenotypes.  

Further reading: Silver J, Steffens A, Chastek B, Deb A. Real-world effectiveness of mepolizumab in patients with allergic and non-allergic asthma. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2022;125(5):S42-43. doi: 10.1016/j.anai.2022.08.624