Key takeaways:
Skyrizi (risankizumab-rzaa) is an injectable medication that treats psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease in adults.
Skyrizi works by blocking a protein called interleukin-23. This reduces inflammation in the skin, joints, and gastrointestinal tract to help reduce your symptoms.
There are many ways to save on Skyrizi. If you’re eligible, a manufacturer savings card can help you access Skyrizi for as little as $0 per month. A patient assistance program is also available.
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Biologic medications are powerful tools for tackling autoimmune conditions. These medications target specific processes in the body to reduce inflammation and improve your symptoms. Skyrizi (risankizumab-rzaa) is one example.
By targeting a key protein in the body that fuels inflammation, Skyrizi helps reduce symptoms, improve quality of life, and, in some cases, slow disease progression.
Below, we’ll dive into what Skyrizi is used for, how it works, and common side effects to consider when deciding whether it’s the right treatment for you.
What is Skyrizi used for?
Skyrizi is an injectable medication that’s FDA approved for moderate-to-severe psoriasis and active psoriatic arthritis. It’s also approved to treat moderate-to-severe Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. At this time, Skyrizi is only approved for adults.
But Skyrizi wasn’t approved for these conditions all at once — it took several years. Here’s a timeline of Skyrizi’s FDA approvals:
Originally approved for psoriasis in April 2019
Approved for psoriatic arthritis in January 2022
Approved for Crohn’s disease in June 2022
Approved for ulcerative colitis in June 2024
How does Skyrizi work?
Skyrizi is a monoclonal antibody — a lab-made antibody (protein). It works by blocking a protein in your body called interleukin-23 (IL-23).
IL-23 is naturally present in your body. It plays an important role in your immune system. But people living with autoimmune conditions, such as psoriasis and Crohn’s disease, can have higher levels of IL-23 than usual. This leads to excess inflammation.
By blocking IL-23, Skyrizi decreases inflammation in the skin, joints, and gut, which can help improve your symptoms.
How often do you receive Skyrizi?
Your Skyrizi dosage, and how you receive it, will depend on what health condition you’re treating.
For psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, Skyrizi is injected under your skin. You’ll typically start with two 150 mg doses injected 4 weeks (1 month) apart. After that, you’ll inject 150 mg under the skin every 12 weeks (3 months). Your prescriber should show you how to inject Skyrizi at your first appointment. After that, you can inject Skyrizi on your own at home into your stomach or the top of your thighs. If someone else is giving you the injection, the outside of your upper arms are an option, too.
For inflammatory bowel conditions, you’ll receive your first doses of Skyrizi as an infusion into your vein. For Crohn’s disease, you’ll typically start with 3 infusions of 600 mg every 4 weeks. For ulcerative colitis, you’ll typically start with 3 infusions of 1,200 mg every 4 weeks. For both conditions, after these first 3 doses, you can inject 180 mg to 360 mg every 8 weeks (2 months) under the skin at home.
How do you inject Skyrizi? Learn the steps involved in injecting Skyrizi, plus more pharmacist-backed tips to get the most from your medication.
Skyrizi dosages: Here’s a review of the approved Skyrizi dosages and how often you’ll need an injection.
How does Skyrizi make you feel? These first-hand accounts from people using Skyrizi for inflammatory bowel disease can help you know what to expect.
What are the potential side effects of Skyrizi?
Like all medications, Skyrizi has side effects to be aware of. Common Skyrizi side effects include:
Upper respiratory tract infections, such as the common cold
Headache
Feeling tired
Pain and swelling where Skyrizi was injected
Tinea (fungal) infections, such as athlete’s foot or ringworm
Rare but serious side effects, such as liver problems and skin rashes, are also possible.
Because it slows your immune system activity, Skyrizi raises your risk of severe infections, such as:
Cellulitis (skin infections)
Osteomyelitis (bone infections)
Sepsis (blood infections)
While you’re receiving Skyrizi, your healthcare team should monitor you for signs and symptoms of an infection. As a precaution, you’ll also be screened for existing infections, such as tuberculosis, hepatitis B and C, and HIV, before starting Skyrizi. It’s also important to ensure you’re up to date with your regular vaccinations to decrease your infection risk.
How effective is Skyrizi?
Skyrizi is considered a safe and effective treatment option for the autoimmune conditions it treats. Below, we detail what researchers found in their clinical study results on Skyrizi by condition.
Skyrizi for psoriasis
What we know about Skyrizi's effectiveness for psoriasis comes from the “ultlMMa-1” and “ultlMMa-2” studies.
In both studies, Skyrizi was compared to Stelara and placebo (an injection with no medication in it) for people living with moderate-to-severe psoriasis.
After 4 months, about 75% of people receiving Skyrizi in each study achieved 90% clearer skin. For the majority of this group, Skyrizi’s benefits continued through the first year of treatment. Those receiving Skyrizi had significantly better results than those in the studies who received Stelara (ustekinumab) or a placebo.
Skyrizi for psoriatic arthritis
Most of what we know about Skyrizi’s effectiveness for psoriatic arthritis comes from the “KEEPsAKE-1” and “KEEPsAKE-2” studies. These studies looked at adults living with active psoriatic arthritis who were new to biologics or hadn’t responded well to other biologic treatments. In these studies, Skyrizi was compared to placebo over 24 weeks.
By the end of these studies, nearly 60% of participants receiving Skyrizi had at least 20% improvement in joint pain, stiffness, and swelling. Study participants maintained these benefits for up to 100 weeks.
Skyrizi for Crohn’s disease
Skyrizi was tested for Crohn’s disease in the ADVANCE and MOTIVATE studies. These trials involved people living with moderate-to-severe Crohn’s disease. Skyrizi was compared to placebo over 12 weeks.
By week 12, more people receiving Skyrizi were twice as likely to achieve clinical remission and intestinal healing compared to those taking a placebo. People who responded to Skyrizi showed maintained improvement after 1 year.
Skyrizi for ulcerative colitis
Skyrizi’s role in ulcerative colitis is based on the INSPIRE and COMMAND studies. Both studies included people living with moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis. In the INSPIRE study, participants had not responded well to earlier biologic treatments. In the COMMAND study, most people were new to biologic therapy. Skyrizi was compared to placebo in both studies.
After 12 weeks, more people receiving Skyrizi reached clinical remission compared to those taking placebo. Many also showed healing in the gut, based on endoscopic exams. For people who responded to Skyrizi and continued using it, they were able to maintain these results for 1 year.
These findings suggest that Skyrizi may help reduce symptoms and inflammation for people with ulcerative colitis, even if past treatments weren’t effective.
How to save on Skyrizi
There are ways to save on Skyrizi, which is only available as a reference (brand-name) medication. GoodRx can help you navigate between patient assistance programs and zz to save money on your prescription.
Save with patient assistance programs. If you’re uninsured or underinsured, you may be eligible for Skyrizi’s patient assistance program, which offers the medication free of cost.
Save with a copay savings card. If you have commercial insurance, you may be eligible to pay as little as $0 for Skyrizi using a savings card from the manufacturer.
The bottom line
Skyrizi (risankizumab-rzaa) was first FDA-approved for moderate-to-severe psoriasis. Since then, it’s also been approved for psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis. Skyrizi works by blocking interleukin-23, an immune system protein that can lead to inflammation. This helps reduce your symptoms.
If you’re using Skyrizi to treat psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis, you can inject it under the skin at home after your first dose or two. Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis require 3 intravenous infusions of Skyrizi. But after that, you can continue your doses by injecting them under the skin at home.
Skyrizi is considered a safe and effective treatment option. It may even help improve your symptoms after other biologic medications weren’t effective for you. Talk to your healthcare professional to determine if Skyrizi is the right option for your needs.
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References
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AbbVie. (2024). Skyrizi [package insert]. DailyMed.
AbbVie. (2024). U.S. FDA approves SKYRIZI (risankizumab-rzaa) for ulcerative colitis, expanding AbbVie's portfolio across inflammatory bowel disease.
ClinicalTrials.gov. (2021). BI 655066 (Risankizumab) compared to placebo and active comparator (Ustekinumab) in patients with moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis. National Library of Medicine.
ClinicalTrials.gov. (2021). BI 655066 versus placebo & active comparator (Ustekinumab) in patients with moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis. National Library of Medicine.
D’Haens, G., et al. (2022). Risankizumab as induction therapy for Crohn's disease: results from the phase 3 ADVANCE and MOTIVATE induction trials. The Lancet.
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Louis, E., et al. (2024). Risankizumab for ulcerative colitis. JAMA.
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Östör, A., et al. (2022). Efficacy and safety of risankizumab for active psoriatic arthritis: 24-week results from the randomised, double-blind, phase 3 KEEPsAKE 2 trial. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.
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