Reslizumab, a monoclonal recombinant antibody to interleukin-5 did not receive FDA approval for eosinophilic esophagitis. However, a recent report (J Markowitz et al. Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition: June 2018 – Volume 66 – Issue 6 – p 893–897) describes the outcomes of patients who entered the randomized control trial and continued to receive subsequently via open label extension (OLE, n=6) or through compassionate use (CU, n=4. This study provides data over 9 years of treatment.
Key findings:
- Median eosinophil count dropped from 35 to 3
- No serious adverse events were noted
- Clinical features improved. For example, dysphagia dropped from 42% to 0% and vomiting dropped from 67% to 17%
My take: Though this is a small study, it shows that in selected patients disruption of the inflammatory pathways can result in significant clinical improvement.
Pics from Ameila Island and thereabouts -Not sure whose dog (not ours)
