Mitcham

Researchers are evaluating the safety and effectiveness of baricitinib, a medication taken by mouth, for treating severe or very severe alopecia areata, a type of hair loss, in children aged 6 to less than 18 years. This Phase 3 study involves children and adolescents who have had alopecia areata for at least one year and are experiencing a current episode lasting at least six months with significant hair loss. The study aims to see how well baricitinib works compared to a placebo. The study is divided into four distinct periods: a 5-week screening period to determine eligibility, a 36-week double-blind treatment period where participants receive either baricitinib or placebo, an approximately 2-year long-term extension period for continued treatment, and a 4-week post-treatment follow-up period to monitor participants after stopping the medication. Both baricitinib and placebo are administered orally. Participants will undergo various assessments throughout the study, including measuring the severity of hair loss using the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) score. The main outcome is the percentage of participants achieving a SALT score of 20 or less after 36 weeks of treatment. Safety and pharmacokinetics of baricitinib will also be monitored during the study. The total participation may last over two years, including treatment and follow-up phases.

This trial investigates treatments for children aged 2 to less than 12 years with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis, a skin condition causing rash and itching due to inflammation. It compares oral upadacitinib, a drug approved for patients 12 years and older, with subcutaneous dupilumab, focusing on safety, adverse events, and changes in disease activity. The study is phase 3, open-label, and efficacy-assessor-blinded, enrolling about 675 participants worldwide who require systemic anti-inflammatory treatment beyond topical therapies. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive upadacitinib daily as oral tablets or oral solution for 160 weeks, or dupilumab by injection according to its approved dosing every 2 or 4 weeks for 52 weeks. Participants are stratified by disease severity, age, and previous treatment response. After completing treatment, follow-up visits occur for 30 days after upadacitinib and at least 12 weeks after dupilumab. The trial may involve more treatment visits than standard care. Throughout the study, participants attend regular hospital or clinic visits for clinical assessments, blood tests, and questionnaires to monitor disease severity and side effects. Researchers measure the percentage of participants achieving significant improvement in eczema severity by week 16 and track adverse events up to about week 172. This careful monitoring helps evaluate the safety and efficacy of the treatments over the long term.