The cardiovascular safety of the drug alitretinoin

Abstract

British Journal of DermatologyVolume 185, Issue 4 p. e164-e164 Plain Language Summary The cardiovascular safety of the drug alitretinoin First published: 04 October 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/bjd.20674AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Abstract Linked Article: Poizeau et al. Br J Dermatol 2021; 185:764–771. Hand eczema is a skin disease causing intense itching and dry skin on the hands. It affects around 15% of people worldwide during their lifetime, and is more frequent among young adults. Most people can control hand eczema with treatments applied directly to the skin. Some people, however, have severe disease that can be better managed with an oral drug called alitretinoin. As this drug class can increase lipid levels, which are considered as a cardiovascular risk factor, lipid levels should be monitored in patients taking this medication. The cardiovascular risk of alitretinoin has not been investigated to date, although several patients have reported severe cardiac events. This study wanted to find out if alitretinoin is associated with an increased risk of heart attack, stroke and leg artery disease leading to revascularization (known as atherothrombotic events). In France, over 19,000 patients have received oral alitretinoin since 2009, and 64 (0·3%) had either a heart attack, a stroke or a revascularization for leg artery disease during their treatment. We compared the incidence (frequency) of these atherothrombotic events among patients who received alitretinoin with people in the French population of the same age, sex and baseline cardiovascular risk, who had not taken alitretinoin. In our study, we found that the risk of heart attack, stroke and revascularization for leg artery disease did not increase during alitretinoin treatment, nor in the 2 years following starting this drug. We conclude that, in current prescription settings that include monitoring lipid levels, patients receiving alitretinoin do not have an increased risk of atherothrombotic events. Volume185, Issue4October 2021Pages e164-e164 RelatedInformation