Tofacitinib vs. Etanercept for Moderate to Severe Psoriasis

A number of cytokines contribute to the pathogenesis of psoriasis. They mediate their effects by binding to receptors on target cells and, as a consequence, activate signal transduction pathways, which ultimately result in the development of psoriatic plaques. The Jak/Stat signal transduction pathway is particularly important in this regard. To evaluate the role of tofacitinib, an oral inhibitor of Jak1 and Jak3, in treating psoriasis, investigators enrolled 1106 adults with moderate-to-severe disease into a manufacturer-supported, randomized, double-blind, multicenter phase 3 trial.

There were four treatment arms: placebo, etanercept 50 mg twice weekly, tofacitinib 5 mg twice daily, and tofacitinib 10 mg twice daily. At 12 weeks, rates of ≥…