Introduction
Ixekizumab (trade name: Taltz) has been approved in Germany since October 2016 for the systemic treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adults. Since January 2018, ixekizumab has also been approved for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis if previous treatment with conventional antirheumatic medication or biological drugs was not effective enough or is not an option.
Psoriasis is a non-contagious inflammatory skin disease. The symptoms usually include clearly defined red patches (called "plaques"), scaly skin and often itching too. They come and go in bouts: The skin can get better on its own, but it may also suddenly get worse. Psoriasis is a chronic (long-lasting) condition that currently has no cure.
The most common form, affecting about 85% of people with psoriasis, is called plaque psoriasis or psoriasis vulgaris. Psoriatic arthritis (arthritis psoriatica) is less common. It also involves swelling, inflammation and pain in your joints.
Plaque psoriasis is usually treated with medications applied directly to the skin (topically), for instance with creams or ointments. Phototherapy (light therapy) is an option for people with more severe psoriasis. There are also medications designed to slow down or stop the inflammatory process in different ways. They can either be taken as tablets or injected into the bloodstream. This form of treatment is called systemic treatment.
Patients are first given conventional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) such as methotrexate or leflunomide. If these are no longer effective enough, medications produced using biotechnology (biological drugs, or biologics) can be used instead. These include the drugs etanercept, golimumab, adalimumab or infliximab.
Treatment with ixekizumab aims to decrease the inflammation by inhibiting a protein, thereby reducing the production of several chemical messengers that promote inflammation.