Scientists finally found a new jab that may treat eczema and millions of people may benefit from it.
Researchers from Oxford University discovered the new injection improved the skin of 12 patients within just a month.
The results of the study were ‘hugely exciting’ and charities today claimed the medication, called etokimab, is a part of the ‘future of treatment.’
Scientists now plan to trial the therapy on 300 people with the condition.
In Britain alone, around 6 million people have eczema. Around 35 million people suffer from the condition in the US.
The underlying cause of the condition has mystified dermatologists for years. Eczema causes patients to itch and scratch their skin until it becomes red and inflamed.
The most common treatments for the condition are anti-inflammatory steroid creams but they are potent and can result in side effects. Other injections, including dupilumab, already exist.
Published in Science Translational Medicine, the new study could give patients another jab that targets IL-33, a chemical in the immune system that fuels inflammation by acquiring immune cells to the area of damaged skin.
“We have found they (the patients) experienced significant improvement in their symptoms after a single dose,” said study author Professor Graham Ogg.
But he also said that the results are ‘very preliminary.’ His team is looking forward to discovering whether the new jab works for a bigger group of sufferers.
All volunteers showed improvements after getting etokimab and the reduction in their symptoms still persisted after 29 days, according to the study.
At the end of the month, there was a 40 percent decreased in eosinophils in their blood.
The consultant dermatologist and British Skin Foundation spokesperson, Dr. Emma Wedgeworth, said: “There is no doubt in my mind that targeted therapies like this are the future of treatment for severe eczema.
“Eczema therapies have really lagged behind psoriasis treatments and for so long, we have relied on strong general immunosuppressants.”
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