Thyroid Eye Disease

The COVID-19 pandemic has abruptly affected drug manufacturing in the United States. This now includes the production of Tepezza, the only FDA-approved medical therapy for thyroid eye disease.

Most patients with chronic thyroid eye disease had low quality of life despite receiving treatment or undergoing surgery, according to a recent survey. It was the top story in endocrinology last week.

Survey data show that the symptom burden of thyroid eye disease persists during the chronic phase of the disease, with most patients reporting continued low quality of life even after systemic glucocorticoid therapy or surgery.

Researchers found the highest prevalence of thyroid eye disease in African American and white patients in an evaluation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology IRIS Registry.

In a review of the 2020 milestones, Endocrine Today compiled a list of drugs and devices related to the field that were newly approved, cleared and had label or indication changes.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the FDA approved 47 new molecular entities in 2020, including one for ophthalmology, compared with 48 in 2019, according to a speaker at the virtual Ophthalmology Innovation Summit Year in Review meeting.

Additional data from the OPTIC-X extension trial and pooled analysis of phase 2 and 3 trial data confirm the efficacy of teprotumumab for the treatment of thyroid eye disease in the longer term and at different degrees of disease severity.

Adults with active thyroid eye disease assigned the human monoclonal antibody teprotumumab experienced improvements in disease outcomes that persisted nearly 1 year after receiving the last trial dose, new study data show.

Two of five people with Graves’ disease worldwide have thyroid eye disease, with higher rates among Asian populations vs. other ethnicities, according to a meta-analysis published in Clinical Endocrinology.

The increased focus on mental health amid the COVID-19 pandemic provides an important reminder to take stock of our patients’ mental health, as well as their physical health. This is especially critical for patients living with thyroid eye disease.