Monitoring Recommendations for Patients on Cosentyx (Secukinumab)

Patient Evaluation and Monitoring

The British Journal of Dermatology recommends tuberculosis screening before starting secukinumab therapy to test for latent TB 1, 3
A baseline complete blood count (CBC) is recommended to monitor for potential neutropenia, which has been reported with secukinumab 1, 2
Inflammatory markers, such as C-reactive protein (CRP), should be considered at baseline to assess disease activity 4
Periodic monitoring of CBC is necessary during maintenance therapy to identify potential neutropenia 1, 2
Clinical monitoring for signs of infection is essential, as secukinumab increases the risk of infection 1, 3
The British Journal of Dermatology suggests monitoring for inflammatory bowel disease markers in patients with risk factors, as secukinumab has been associated with new cases or exacerbations of inflammatory bowel disease 3, 5

Neutropenia occurs more frequently with secukinumab than placebo, with most cases being mild, transient, and reversible 1, 2
Rare cases of Grade 4 neutropenia have been reported with secukinumab 1, 2
Upper respiratory tract infections are very common (≥1/10) in patients taking secukinumab 1, 2
Mucosal and cutaneous candidiasis have been reported in patients taking secukinumab 1, 3
Serious infections occur in a small proportion of patients (0.015 serious infections per patient-year) taking secukinumab 1, 2