The results of a short term trial comparing experimental drug Ustekinumab with existing Enbrel carried out on 902-patients and presented at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress in Paris, indicate the superiority of Ustekinumab over Enbrel in treating moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. 

The 12-week trial saw one group of patients given one short of Ustekinumab at the start with a booster shot four weeks later, while other patients received two shots of Enbrel each week. 

Patients who wee administered Ustekinumab shots experienced minimal signs of psoriasis compared to 49% of those treated with Enbrel. However, the study does not address the long-term safety of the new therapy. 

Psoriasis results because of a faulty immune system, in which excess levels of immune cells that cause overproduction of skin cells, which accumulate on the skin’s surface in red, scaly plaques that can itch, bleed and hurt. A disorder commonly affecting skin and joints, it progresses to a type of arthritis, causing joint pain and immobility. 

About 7.5-million Americans and 10-million Europeans suffer from psoriasis, nearly one-quarter of which are moderate or severe cases.