More options for both patients and physicians are always a big plus. In the realm of dermatology, treatments for skin disorders have significantly expanded over the last 20 years. This has proved the case for Atopic Dermatitis as well, where It seems the recent few years have brought several companies to look to oral JAK inhibitors as a possible treatment, in addition to their uses in other disorders.
Janus Kinases (JAKs) are tyrosine kinases (proteins) that bind to transmembrane receptors and help to mediate cellular responses. This is particularly important in immune defense. With this in mind, JAK inhibitors appear to be a plausible treatment in a number of disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, spondylarthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and atopic dermatitis.
Four oral JAK inhibitors currently being investigated for the treatment of atopic dermatitis are upadacitinib, abrocitinib, baricitinib and tofacitinib. Oral and topical JAK inhibitors appear to be a promising treatment in atopic dermatitis, and further longer duration studies are currently ongoing, after relative success in initial short-term studies.
