Photo Credit: Pawel Kacperek

The following is a summary of “Response to Acthar Gel in sarcoidosis uveitis: A prospective open label study,” published in the NOVEMBER 2023 issue of Pulmonology by Ungprasert, et al.

For a prospective open-label study, researchers sought to assess the response to Acthar Gel® in patients experiencing moderate to severe sarcoidosis uveitis.

Enrollment included patients with moderate to severe sarcoidosis uveitis, who received a daily dosage of 80 units of Acthar Gel for ten days, followed by maintenance treatment with 80 units twice weekly. The primary outcome assessed the proportion of patients meeting specific criteria, including improved visual acuity, resolution of intraocular inflammation, at least 50% tapering of ocular or oral steroids, or reduction of cystoid macular edema, with no worsening of any single measure and no requirement for additional sarcoidosis therapies at 24 weeks.

Nine patients were enrolled, and four completed the full 24-week course of Acthar Gel. Three of these patients met the primary endpoint among the five patients who did not complete the treatment, four discontinued due to worsening ocular inflammation, and one discontinued due to severe adverse effects. Common adverse effects included fluid retention (77%), insomnia (44%), hypertension (44%), and hyperglycemia (44%).

While a clinical response to Acthar Gel was observed in some patients with moderate to severe sarcoidosis uveitis, a notable proportion either did not respond or could not tolerate the therapy. The findings provided preliminary data for future controlled trials of Acthar Gel but did not advocate for its use before considering other treatment options.

Source: resmedjournal.com/article/S0954-6111(23)00310-4/fulltext