Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Clinical Trial
. 2023 May;151(5):1269-1276.
doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2023.01.020. Epub 2023 Feb 3.

Comparative effectiveness of omalizumab, mepolizumab, and dupilumab in asthma: A target trial emulation

Affiliations
Clinical Trial

Comparative effectiveness of omalizumab, mepolizumab, and dupilumab in asthma: A target trial emulation

Ayobami T Akenroye et al. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2023 May.

Abstract

Background: Multiple mAbs are currently approved for the treatment of asthma. However, there is limited evidence on their comparative effectiveness.

Objective: Our aim was to compare the effectiveness of omalizumab, mepolizumab, and dupilumab in individuals with moderate-to-severe asthma.

Methods: We emulated a hypothetical randomized trial using electronic health records from a large US-based academic health care system. Participants aged 18 years or older with baseline IgE levels between 30 and 700 IU/mL and peripheral eosinophil counts of at least 150 cells/μL were eligible for study inclusion. The study period extended from March 2016 to August 2021. Outcomes included the incidence of asthma-related exacerbations and change in baseline FEV1 value over 12 months of follow-up.

Results: In all, 68 individuals receiving dupilumab, 68 receiving omalizumab, and 65 receiving mepolizumab met the inclusion criteria. Over 12 months of follow-up, 31 exacerbations occurred over 68 person years (0.46 exacerbations per person year) in the dupilumab group, 63 over 68 person years (0.93 per person year) in the omalizumab group, and 86 over 65 person years (1.32 per person year) in the mepolizumab group (adjusted incidence rate ratios: dupilumab vs mepolizumab, 0.28 [95% CI = 0.09-0.84]; dupilumab vs omalizumab, 0.36 [95% CI = 0.12-1.09]; and omalizumab vs mepolizumab, 0.78 [95% CI = 0.32-1.91]). The differences in the change in FEV1 comparing patients who received the different biologics were as follows: 0.11 L (95% CI = -0.003 to 0.222 L) for dupilumab versus mepolizumab, 0.082 L (95% CI -0.040 to 0.204 L) for dupilumab versus omalizumab, and 0.026 L (95% CI -0.083 to 0.140 L) for omalizumab versus mepolizumab.

Conclusions: Among patients with asthma and eosinophil counts of at least 150 cells/μL and IgE levels of 30 to 700 kU/L, dupilumab was associated with greater improvements in exacerbation and FEV1 value than omalizumab and mepolizumab.

Keywords: Asthma; allergic; comparative effectiveness; dupilumab; eosinophilic; mAbs; mepolizumab; omalizumab; target trial emulation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

FIGURE 1:
FIGURE 1:
Flow chart showing the selection of the study population
FIGURE 2:
FIGURE 2:
Cumulative incidence of exacerbations over 12 months of follow up
FIGURE 3:
FIGURE 3:
Cumulative incidence of exacerbations over 12 months of follow up including switch as a failure event

References

    1. Drazen JM, Harrington D. New Biologics for Asthma. N Engl J Med. 2018;378(26):2533–4. - PubMed
    1. Akenroye A, McCormack M, Keet C. Severe Asthma in the US Population and Eligibility for Monoclonal Antibody Therapy. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2019. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Brusselle GG, Koppelman GH. Biologic Therapies for Severe Asthma. N Engl J Med. 2022;386(2):157–71. - PubMed
    1. Fajt ML, Wenzel SE. Asthma phenotypes and the use of biologic medications in asthma and allergic disease: the next steps toward personalized care. The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology. 2015;135(2):299–310; quiz 1. - PubMed
    1. Hernan MA, Sauer BC, Hernandez-Diaz S, Platt R, Shrier I. Specifying a target trial prevents immortal time bias and other self-inflicted injuries in observational analyses. J Clin Epidemiol. 2016;79:70–5. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms