Omalizumab usage in chronic urticaria and atopic dermatitis: data from South-East province of Turkey

Introduction
Omalizumab is a current treatment option for IgE-associated dermatoses, such as urticaria and atopic dermatitis.

Aim
To evaluate the clinical and laboratory findings of patients with chronic urticaria and atopic dermatitis who received omalizumab.

Material and methods
This study was planned as a cross-sectional and retrospective one. One hundred forty-six cases were included in the study. Omalizumab at a dose of 300 mg for patients with chronic urticaria and 600 mg for patients with atopic dermatitis, was given every 4 weeks. The response to the given treatment and remission status of patients were investigated.

Results
Of 146 patients included in the study, 70.5% (n = 103) were female and their mean age was 42.3 ±13.8 (min.–max.: 14–85). Of the patients, 136 had chronic urticaria and 10 had atopic dermatitis. 29.9% (n = 26) of patients with chronic urticaria had a complete response to omalizumab treatment, whereas 40% (n = 4) of patients with atopic dermatitis had remission.

Conclusions
The decline of complaints with different treatment schemes in different patients suggests that treatment should be designed individually and that personal biomarkers playing a role in the effectiveness of the drug are important. Patients with the high IgE and eosinophil percentages and positive autologous serum test had a better treatment response to omalizumab treatment. Meanwhile, remission was found to be more frequent in atopic dermatitis patients with omalizumab treatment compared to the patients with urticaria. It may be more appropriate to choose patients based on certain criteria to ensure cost-effectiveness in omalizumab treatment.