This was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter design. Patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis received secukinumab 300 mg or placebo, with randomization stratified by body weight (\< 90 kg, ≥ 90 kg). There were 5 periods to the study: Screening (1 to 4 weeks), Double-blind Treatment Period (12 weeks), Double-blind Induction Period (4 weeks), Open-label Treatment Period (36 weeks), and Follow-up Period (1 week).
During the Double-blind Treatment Period, all patients attended study visits at Baseline, Weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, and 12, and all doses of study treatment were self-administered at the study site. Patients underwent lesional (LS) and non-lesional (NL) skin biopsies at Baseline and Week 12. Assessments for the primary efficacy variable were performed at Week 12 before patients received their Week 12 dose. During the Double-blind Induction Period, patients randomized to placebo were switched to secukinumab 300 mg for the remainder of the study.
K16 and skin histology/biomarkers were assessed from skin biopsies. The Psoriasis Assessment and Severity Index (PASI) and the Investigator's Global Assessment modified 2011 scale (IGA mod 2011) were performed at specified study visits. Safety was monitored by vital signs, weight, waist circumference, body mass index (BMI), and clinical laboratory tests (serum chemistry, hematology, highsensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), homeostatic assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), viral serology, serum and urine pregnancy).
