Kohlmeier-Degos DiseasePhase 2NCT06923072
Baricitinib in the Treatment of Kohlmeier-Degos Disease in Patients With Neurological Involvement
A Phase 2 study testing Baricitinib in people with Kohlmeier-Degos Disease and Malignant Atrophic Papulosis, run by National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
Background: Kohlmeier-Degos (KD) is a rare disease that causes inflammation and blood clots, leading to blockages in small blood vessels. These blockages can result in K-D lesions throughout the body, affecting the skin, lungs, heart, spinal cord, and brain. KD can be fatal. No treatment exists for this disease. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 99 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Kohlmeier-Degos Disease, Malignant Atrophic Papulosis, Degos Disease
- What is being tested?
- Baricitinib
- Type of treatment
- Pill or oral medicine
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 12 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 18 Feb 2026to 15 Dec 2030
- Phase
- Phase 2
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 99 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- In order to be eligible to participate in this study, an individual must meet all of the following criteria:
- Provision of signed and dated informed consent form by the subject or Legally Authorized Representative (LAR).
- Stated willingness to comply with all study procedures and availability for the duration of the study.
- Male or female, aged 18 or older.
- Subjects diagnosed with systemic Degos disease, who manifest neurologic abnormalities observed clinically, radiologically or in abnormal laboratory findings.
- Ability to take oral medication and be willing to adhere to the baricitinib regimen.
- For female patients of reproductive potential, non-pregnant, non-breastfeeding: agree to use of highly effective contraception for the duration of the study and 30 days after the last dose.
- Ability of subject or LAR to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document.
Who cannot join
- Active infection not responding to appropriate therapy
- Hemoglobin <7 g/dL
- Platelet counts < 50 K /mcL
- Neutropenia (ANC <0.5 x k/mcL)
- Lymphopenia (Absolute Lymphocyte Count [ALC] <0.2x k/mcL)
- Liver function tests (LFTs > 2x time upper limit of normal)
Show all 16Show fewer
- Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR)/Creatinine (Cr < 30 mL/min)
- Have experienced any of the following within 12 weeks of screening: VTE (DVT/pulmonary embolism [PE]), myocardial infarction (MI), unstable ischemic heart disease, stroke, or New York Heart Association Stage III/IV heart failure.
- Have had symptomatic herpes zoster infection within 12 weeks prior to a enrolling in the study .
- Have had household contact with a person with active TB and did not receive appropriate and documented prophylaxis for TB.
- Have evidence of active TB or latent TB
- Have been exposed to a live vaccine within 12 weeks of baricitinib treatment or are expected to need/receive a live vaccine during the course of the study
- No gadolinium based contrast agent exposure is permitted if eGFR < 30 mL/min/1.73m^2 using the CKD-EPI equation measured within 5 days .
- Breast feeding
- Pregnancy
- Uncontrolled malignancy
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
United States1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
National Institutes of Health Clinical Center
Bethesda, Maryland, 20892
NIH Clinical Center Office of Patient Recruitment (OPR), 800-411-1222 ext. TTY dial 711, ccopr@nih.gov
About this study
Official title: A Phase IIa Trial of Baricitinib in the Treatment of Kohlmeier-Degos Disease Patients With Neurological Involvement
Background:
Kohlmeier-Degos (KD) is a rare disease that causes inflammation and blood clots, leading to blockages in small blood vessels. These blockages can result in K-D lesions throughout the body, affecting the skin, lungs, heart, spinal cord, and brain. KD can be fatal. No treatment exists for this disease.
Read more
Objective:
To test a study drug (baricitinib) in people with brain and spine lesions caused by KD disease. Baricitinib is FDA approved to treat other disorders but has not yet been tried in people with KD.
Eligibility:
People aged 18 years or older with KD-related lesions in the brain and spine.
Design:
Participants will be screened; they will have a physical exam with blood tests. They will also have a baseline visit that may include multiple tests, such as imaging scans of the brain and spine; a lumbar puncture to collect fluid from the spinal canal; and a meeting with a neurologist. They will fill out a questionnaire about their health. They will continue to take their normal medications throughout the study.
Baricitinib is a tablet taken by mouth. Participants will remain on their normal medications for 12 weeks after their baseline visit. Then they will also take the study drug once a day at home for 24 weeks.
Participants will have clinic visits every few weeks for up to 40 weeks. Some visits may take 1 to 4 days. Baseline tests will be repeated 3 more times during study visits. Other visits will require only blood tests; these may be done by local labs that will send the samples to NIH; 2 visits may be done via telehealth....
Read the detailed description
Study Description:
This phase II study will provide off-label baricitinib treatment in patients with Kohlmeier Degos disease (K-D) with neurologic involvement. We will perform a baseline research evaluation at the time of enrollment and follow each patient for 12 weeks of background therapy (defined as medications taken by the subject for management of Degos symptoms) followed by 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 mg daily) in addition to background therapy followed by 4 additional weeks of background therapy with final safety assessment at 40 weeks. We will repeat research evaluations at the end of weeks 12, 24, and 36. We will compare the disease progression between weeks 1 through 12 to weeks 13 through 24 as well as weeks 13 through 36. We hypothesize that baricitinib, which targets type I interferon (IFN) and IFN-g signaling, will attenuate various neurological manifestations of K-D that are observed clinically, radiologically or in abnormal laboratory findings in our KD patients. This will help reduce IFN signaling in a manner that may slow or halt the disease progression as measured by the endpoints established below.
Objectives:
Primary Objective:
To test whether baricitinib delays progression of neuroradiological manifestations in patients with neurological involvement of K-D disease.
Secondary Objectives:
To test whether baricitinib treatment improves patient-reported outcomes.
Exploratory Objectives:
- Assess changes in immune cell proportion using single cell Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) sequencing (scRNA-seq) in biospecimens such as skin, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood after 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment compared to 12 weeks of just background therapy
- Assess changes in plasma/serum cytokine levels and IFN scores as well as biomarker assays in CSF/blood samples after 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment compared to 12 weeks of just background therapy.
- To assess whether 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment will stabilize or improve clinical neurologic exams.
- To assess whether 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment compared to 12 weeks of just background therapy will reduce the number of new acute K-D skin lesions or slow/halt the progression of existing K-D skin lesions. To assess whether 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment will reduce the number of new acute K-D skin lesions or slow/halt the progression of existing K-D skin lesions.
Endpoints:
- The primary endpoint will assess the stability of existing enhancing lesions or the lack of development of new enhancing lesions in the brain and spine observed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 milligrams [mg] daily) compared to existing enhancing lesions observed over 12 weeks of background therapy.
- The secondary endpoints will assess the change over 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only for the following outcomes: self-reported outcome measures based on health-related questionnaire ( SF-36 ).
- Exploratory endpoints of this study will be clinical and potential surrogate biomarker efficacy data, including:
- Changes in transcriptome/ribonucleic acid (RNA) expression determined by scRNA-seq in skin, CSF and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only.
- Attenuation of plasma/serum cytokine levels and IFN scores as well as biomarkers in assays using CSF and blood samples after 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy.
- Stability or improvement of motor and/or sensory function on clinical neurologic exams after the 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only.
- Changes in the number of new acute K-D skin lesions or slowing/halting progression of existing K-D skin lesions after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only.
- Conditions
- Kohlmeier-Degos Disease, Malignant Atrophic Papulosis, Degos Disease, Papulosis, Malignant Atrophic
- Being tested
- Baricitinib
- Keywords
- Degos Disease, Kohlmeier-Degos, Baricitinib, Neurological involvement of Degos Disease
- Medical subject headings
- Malignant Atrophic Papulosis
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
BaricitinibDrug
Participants will be instructed to take baricitinib 4mg oral daily for 24 weeks (with or without food)
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Participants with K(SqrRoot)(Delta)hlmeier-Degos Disease receiving Baricitinib | Experimental | All participants will take baricitinib 4mg oral daily for 24 weeks. Receives: Drug: Baricitinib |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Number of participants with stability of existing enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI
Stability of existing enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 mg daily) as compared to MRI images after 12 weeks of background therapy only.
Measured: Baseline, Week 12, Week 24, Week 36
Number of participants with no new enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI
Lack of development of new enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 mg daily) as compared to MRI images after 12 weeks of background therapy only.
Measured: Baseline, Week 12, Week 24, Week 36
Secondary outcomes (2)
Change in health outcome questionnaire, Short Form-36 (SF-36)
Compare the change in health outcome questionnaire, Short Form-36 (SF-36), over 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy. This 36-item, patient-reported survey assesses quality of life. It consists of eight scaled scores, which are the weighted sums of the questions in their section. Each scale is directly transformed into a 0-100 scale on the assumption that each question carries equal weight. The lower the score the more disability. The higher the score the less disability i.e., a score of zero is equivalent to maximum disability and a score of 100 is equivalent to no disability.
Measured: Baseline, Week 12, Week 16, Week 24, Week 36, and up to Week 40
Neurological symptoms using CTCAE
Compare the change of neurological symptoms using CTCAE over 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy.
Measured: Up to 40 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted11 Apr 2025
- Study start18 Feb 2026
- Primary completion14 Dec 2030 (estimated)
- Study completion15 Dec 2030 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Kohlmeier-Degos DiseaseStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)The sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase 2
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 12 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Sponsor type
- US National Institutes of Health
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Cornelia D Cudrici, M.D., Principal investigator, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06923072
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 10002416
- Other IDs
- 002416-H
- Status last verified
- 16 Sep 2026
- First submitted
- 10 Apr 2025
- Last updated
- 18 Sep 2026
- Results posted
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- Yes
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Yes: All IPD that underlie results in a publication
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 18 Sep 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- A Phase IIa Trial of Baricitinib in the Treatment of Kohlmeier-Degos Disease Patients With Neurological Involvement
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06923072
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- 10002416
- Conditions
- Kohlmeier-Degos Disease, Malignant Atrophic Papulosis, Degos Disease, Papulosis, Malignant Atrophic
- Keywords
- Degos Disease, Kohlmeier-Degos, Baricitinib, Neurological involvement of Degos Disease
- Phase
- Phase 2
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 12 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)US National Institutes of Health
- Study start
- 18 Feb 2026 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 14 Dec 2030 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 15 Dec 2030 (estimated)
- First posted
- 11 Apr 2025 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
Background:
Kohlmeier-Degos (KD) is a rare disease that causes inflammation and blood clots, leading to blockages in small blood vessels. These blockages can result in K-D lesions throughout the body, affecting the skin, lungs, heart, spinal cord, and brain. KD can be fatal. No treatment exists for this disease.
Objective:
To test a study drug (baricitinib) in people with brain and spine lesions caused by KD disease. Baricitinib is FDA approved to treat other disorders but has not yet been tried in people with KD.
Eligibility:
People aged 18 years or older with KD-related lesions in the brain and spine.
Design:
Participants will be screened; they will have a physical exam with blood tests. They will also have a baseline visit that may include multiple tests, such as imaging scans of the brain and spine; a lumbar puncture to collect fluid from the spinal canal; and a meeting with a neurologist. They will fill out a questionnaire about their health. They will continue to take their normal medications throughout the study.
Baricitinib is a tablet taken by mouth. Participants will remain on their normal medications for 12 weeks after their baseline visit. Then they will also take the study drug once a day at home for 24 weeks.
Participants will have clinic visits every few weeks for up to 40 weeks. Some visits may take 1 to 4 days. Baseline tests will be repeated 3 more times during study visits. Other visits will require only blood tests; these may be done by local labs that will send the samples to NIH; 2 visits may be done via telehealth....
Detailed description
Study Description:
This phase II study will provide off-label baricitinib treatment in patients with Kohlmeier Degos disease (K-D) with neurologic involvement. We will perform a baseline research evaluation at the time of enrollment and follow each patient for 12 weeks of background therapy (defined as medications taken by the subject for management of Degos symptoms) followed by 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 mg daily) in addition to background therapy followed by 4 additional weeks of background therapy with final safety assessment at 40 weeks. We will repeat research evaluations at the end of weeks 12, 24, and 36. We will compare the disease progression between weeks 1 through 12 to weeks 13 through 24 as well as weeks 13 through 36. We hypothesize that baricitinib, which targets type I interferon (IFN) and IFN-g signaling, will attenuate various neurological manifestations of K-D that are observed clinically, radiologically or in abnormal laboratory findings in our KD patients. This will help reduce IFN signaling in a manner that may slow or halt the disease progression as measured by the endpoints established below.
Objectives:
Primary Objective:
To test whether baricitinib delays progression of neuroradiological manifestations in patients with neurological involvement of K-D disease.
Secondary Objectives:
To test whether baricitinib treatment improves patient-reported outcomes.
Exploratory Objectives:
- Assess changes in immune cell proportion using single cell Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) sequencing (scRNA-seq) in biospecimens such as skin, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood after 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment compared to 12 weeks of just background therapy
- Assess changes in plasma/serum cytokine levels and IFN scores as well as biomarker assays in CSF/blood samples after 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment compared to 12 weeks of just background therapy.
- To assess whether 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment will stabilize or improve clinical neurologic exams.
- To assess whether 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment compared to 12 weeks of just background therapy will reduce the number of new acute K-D skin lesions or slow/halt the progression of existing K-D skin lesions. To assess whether 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment will reduce the number of new acute K-D skin lesions or slow/halt the progression of existing K-D skin lesions.
Endpoints:
- The primary endpoint will assess the stability of existing enhancing lesions or the lack of development of new enhancing lesions in the brain and spine observed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 milligrams [mg] daily) compared to existing enhancing lesions observed over 12 weeks of background therapy.
- The secondary endpoints will assess the change over 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only for the following outcomes: self-reported outcome measures based on health-related questionnaire ( SF-36 ).
- Exploratory endpoints of this study will be clinical and potential surrogate biomarker efficacy data, including:
- Changes in transcriptome/ribonucleic acid (RNA) expression determined by scRNA-seq in skin, CSF and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only.
- Attenuation of plasma/serum cytokine levels and IFN scores as well as biomarkers in assays using CSF and blood samples after 12 and 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy.
- Stability or improvement of motor and/or sensory function on clinical neurologic exams after the 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only.
- Changes in the number of new acute K-D skin lesions or slowing/halting progression of existing K-D skin lesions after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment as compared to 12 weeks of background therapy only.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 1
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Participants with K(SqrRoot)(Delta)hlmeier-Degos Disease receiving Baricitinib | Experimental | Drug: BaricitinibAll participants will take baricitinib 4mg oral daily for 24 weeks. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 99 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (8 listed)
- In order to be eligible to participate in this study, an individual must meet all of the following criteria:
- Provision of signed and dated informed consent form by the subject or Legally Authorized Representative (LAR).
- Stated willingness to comply with all study procedures and availability for the duration of the study.
- Male or female, aged 18 or older.
- Subjects diagnosed with systemic Degos disease, who manifest neurologic abnormalities observed clinically, radiologically or in abnormal laboratory findings.
Key exclusion criteria (16 listed)
- Active infection not responding to appropriate therapy
- Hemoglobin <7 g/dL
- Platelet counts < 50 K /mcL
- Neutropenia (ANC <0.5 x k/mcL)
- Lymphopenia (Absolute Lymphocyte Count [ALC] <0.2x k/mcL)
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| BaricitinibParticipants will be instructed to take baricitinib 4mg oral daily for 24 weeks (with or without food) | Drug | Participants with K(SqrRoot)(Delta)hlmeier-Degos Disease receiving Baricitinib |
Primary outcome
Number of participants with stability of existing enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI
Time frame: Baseline, Week 12, Week 24, Week 36
Stability of existing enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 mg daily) as compared to MRI images after 12 weeks of background therapy only.
Number of participants with no new enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI
Time frame: Baseline, Week 12, Week 24, Week 36
Lack of development of new enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI after 12 or 24 weeks of baricitinib treatment (4 mg daily) as compared to MRI images after 12 weeks of background therapy only.
2 secondary outcomes
Change in health outcome questionnaire, Short Form-36 (SF-36)
Time frame: Baseline, Week 12, Week 16, Week 24, Week 36, and up to Week 40
Neurological symptoms using CTCAE
Time frame: Up to 40 weeks
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 18 Sep 2026.
- NIH Clinical Center Detailed Web PageLink provided by the sponsor.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Yes. All IPD that underlie results in a publication
Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Cornelia D Cudrici, M.D. principal investigator
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A Phase 2 study testing Baricitinib in people with Kohlmeier-Degos Disease and Malignant Atrophic Papulosis, run by National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 8 inclusion and 16 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 18 Sep 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
What does this phase mean?
Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.
Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Ruth C Brower, R.N. ((301) 443-6036, ruth.brower@nih.gov), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Number of participants with stability of existing enhancing lesions in the brain and/or spine observed in MRI (time frame: Baseline, Week 12, Week 24, Week 36). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 18 Sep 2026.