555 Treatment preferences in adult patients with atopic dermatitis

The advent of targeted therapeutic agents for Atopic Dermatitis (AD) ushered in a new era in the treatment of AD. Yet, little is known about patient treatment preferences including their predilection for oral versus injection administration. We explored patient preferences for systemic AD treatments via a one-time survey in a cohort of adult AD patients treated at Penn Dermatology with systemic medications. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize variables. Analyses were performed using STATA IC v.16. Preliminary data reveals the cohort (n=24; mean age=47.3 yrs.) is mostly male (62.5%), non-Latino white (50%), with a college or higher education (25%) and an income of $75,000-99,999 (20.8%). At the time of the survey, 79.2% and 8.3% of respondents were on dupilumab or an oral JAK inhibitor, respectively. Still, when asked, “if given the option of a systemic medication for AD,” most opted for oral (45.8%) versus injectable (20.3%), and 33.3% reported no preference. Notably, 44.4% currently on dupilumab would still prefer oral therapy. The oral-preferred group felt: “they are easier to take than injectable medications” (25%); “I don’t like the idea of giving myself injections” (16.7%); or “they fit better into my lifestyle” (12.5%). The injection-preferred group felt: “they work better than an oral medication” (12.5%), “I would forget to take my oral medication” (8.3%), and “they fit better into my lifestyle” (8.3%). As for treatment duration, 56.5% “would continue to take their medication for as long as it is needed if it means your disease will continue to be under control,” and 30.5% would prefer to “have the option to stop treatment once the disease is well controlled.” For respondents on dupilumab, 45.4% would prefer to discontinue the drug once their disease was under control, and 20.8% would rather stop due to “safety concerns with long-term use.” Additional studies are needed to further explore treatment preferences in AD as this can inform the shared decision-making process of treatment selection.