The study was a phase IV, multicenter, open-label, randomized study evaluating the long-term efficacy of a lower dosage of Soriatane in 77 psoriasis patients. Patients were randomized to receive either 25mg of Soriatane once daily with food for 24 weeks, or 25mg of Soriatane once daily with food for 12 weeks followed by a ‘step down’ dosing regimen of 10mg once daily for 12 weeks.
“The current Soriatane treatment practice is to administer the maximum tolerable dose, ranging from 25mg to 50mg per day, while managing the dose-related side effect profile,” said Dr Jennifer Cather from Modern Dermatology, Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas. “This has been the treatment protocol believed to achieve the greatest patient efficacy benefit. These study results are significant, because they demonstrate that administering Soriatane at the minimal and therefore more tolerable, daily dosing regimen of 10 or 25mg over a six-month period is as effective when compared to the more aggressive treatment regimen in practice today.”