Matthew Brunner, MHS, PA-C, CAQ-Derm, DFAAPA, Program Director of the Elevate-Derm Alliance and a Physician Assistant in Stockbridge, GA, discusses how the influx of new therapies in alopecia areata (AA), atopic dermatitis (AD), and vitiligo are changing the way that advanced practice providers care for their patients.
Key Takeaways From Elevate-Derm Summer 2025 in Park City, UT:
There are now three oral Janus (JAK) kinase inhibitors that are U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved to treat severe AA: baricitinib (Olumiant, Eli Lilly), ritlecitinib (Litfulo, Pfizer), and deuruxolitinib (Leqselvi, Sun Pharma). These drugs are approved for AA patients who have 50% or more hair loss on the scalp as measured by the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT). Still, some AA patients who have moderate disease may also be candidates for oral JAK inhibitors, including those who have failed a traditional therapy for six months or more.
New AD therapies are allowing clinicians to use steroids sparingly. Delgocitinib (Anzupgo, LEO Pharma) cream, a pan-JAK inhibitor, is now available for moderate-to-severe chronic hand eczema (CHE) in adults. In addition, lebrikizumab (Ebglyss, Lilly) and nemolizumab (Nemluvio, Galderma) are two new systemic therapies that are approved in AD. There’s also lots of buzz about the OX40 and OX40L pathways and a robust pipeline of drugs that target them.
Topical ruxolitinib cream 1.5% (Opzelura, Incyte) has changed the treatment landscape for patients with non-segmental vitiligo, which is much more than a cosmetic condition and can negatively affect patients’ quality of life.
