Cosentyx vs Otezla
An injected IL-17 biologic against an oral PDE4 tablet in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis — a large difference in both effectiveness and convenience.
At a glance
Key differences
- Different classes. Cosentyx is an IL-17A inhibitor; Otezla is a PDE4 inhibitor. They act on different targets in the body.
- Time on the market. Cosentyx was first approved by the FDA in 2015, Otezla in 2014.
- Who markets them. Cosentyx is marketed by Novartis; Otezla by Amgen.
What each one treats
A biologic for psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis.
OTEZLA/OTEZLA XR, an inhibitor of phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4), is indicated for the treatment of: Adult patients with: Active psoriatic arthritis ( 1.1 ) Plaque psoriasis who are candidates for phototherapy or systemic therapy ( 1.2 ) Oral ulcers associated with Behçet's Disease ( 1.3 ) Pediatric patients 6 years of age and older with: Active psoriatic arthritis ( 1.1 ) Moderate to severe plaque psoriasis who are candidates for phototherapy or systemic therapy ( 1.2 ) In the pediatric population, OTEZLA is indicated for patients weighing at least 20 kg, and OTEZLA XR is indicated for patients weighing at least 50 kg. 1.1 Psoriatic Arthritis OTEZLA is indicated for the treatment of adult patients and pediatric patients 6 years of age and older and weighing at least 20 kg with active psoriatic arthritis. OTEZLA XR is indicated for the treatment of adult patients and pediatric patients 6 ye…
How each one works
A biologic for psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis.
12.1 Mechanism of Action Apremilast is an oral small molecule inhibitor of phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) specific for cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). PDE4 inhibition results in increased intracellular cAMP levels. The specific mechanism(s) by which apremilast exerts its therapeutic action is not well defined.
Related comparisons
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How this page is built
The facts on this page are pulled directly from official U.S. FDA datasets — they are not written from memory. Each field below names the dataset it came from, so you can check it yourself.
- FDA Drug Label (openFDA) ↗ Indications, mechanism of action and pharmacologic class
- Drugs@FDA ↗ First FDA approval date and the company holding the application
- FDA Drug Shortage Database ↗ Current US supply / shortage status
Plain-English summaries and drug-class explainers are written and reviewed by Sreepriya Prasannan (MSc Digital Transformation of Life Sciences (Innopharma Education / Griffith College); MSc & BSc Botany). Data is retrieved automatically from the sources above and cross-checked with AI-assisted verification (Anthropic's Claude) — brand and generic names are matched against the exact FDA product record so that a combination product or a different formulation cannot be mistaken for the drug on this page. An editor reviews the result before publication. We describe this in full in our editorial standards and corrections policy. The FDA data on this page was last retrieved on 28 Oct 2026. How every register is built: methodology · fixes we have made: corrections log.