Single-Injection Options for Administering a 320 mg Dose of Bimekizumab: 2 mL Safety Syringe and Auto-injector

Bimekizumab has a favourable safety profile and has demonstrated rapid and superior efficacy, compared with placebo, adalimumab, ustekinumab, and secukinumab, in treating psoriasis. A previous study demonstrated the safe and effective subcutaneous self-injection of 320 mg bimekizumab via two 1 mL (2 × 160 mg) doses using safety syringe (SSy) or auto-injector (AI) devices. Delivery of 320 mg bimekizumab via a single 2 mL self-injection could lead to an improved treatment experience for patients.

We describe the results from four studies. Two self-injection experience studies (DV0002 [n = 38] and DV0006 [n = 89], sub-studies of the phase 3 study BE BRIGHT [NCT03598790]) assessed the safe and effective self-administration of bimekizumab at week 8 and baseline, as well as patient self-injection experience and pain, in patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis using the 2 mL SSy or AI. Additionally, we report on two bioequivalence studies (UP0068 [n = 71] and UP0119 [n = 121]) that describe pharmacokinetic profiles for two 1 mL injections and a single 2 mL injection, delivered by SSy or AI devices in healthy participants.

All patients were able to administer safe and effective self-injections at baseline and week 8 using the different 2 mL devices, except one patient that administered an incomplete dose as a result of injection site pain that was mild. Overall, bimekizumab was generally well tolerated and all adverse device effects reported were mild and did not lead to discontinuation. Patients reported a positive self-injection experience with low pain scores (all ≤ 12.0/100). Bioequivalence was demonstrated for bimekizumab between a single 2 mL injection and two 1 mL injections, using both the SSy and AI.

The 2 mL SSy and AI devices offer patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis two different safe and effective options for the delivery of bimekizumab, empowering individuals to select a device on the basis of personal preference. Graphical abstract available for this article.

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier, NCT03766685.