OBJECTIVES: Secukinumab is highly effective for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in clinical trials. Little is known regarding how secukinumab is used long term in a real world setting. This study examined adherence and persistence to secukinumab among patients with plaque psoriasis. METHODS: Adults with ≥ 1 plaque psoriasis diagnosis since January 1, 2014 who initiated secukinumab between January 1, 2015 and April 30, 2016 (first claim=index) with ≥ 6 months of pre-index continuous enrollment in the MarketScan^® Commercial and Medicare Supplemental Databases were selected. Adherence was measured by the proportion of days covered (PDC) with secukinumab. Persistence was defined as the number of days from index until a gap of ≥ 90 days without secukinumab (discontinuation), or the end of follow-up if no discontinuation was observed. Further analysis was conducted for non-mutually exclusive subgroups based on available post-index follow-up (≥3, ≥6, ≥9 and ≥12 months respectively). RESULTS: A total of 1,504 secukinumab patients were examined, with mean age 48.6 years and 54% male. Among all patients, 1,087 (72%), 724 (48%), 355 (24%), and 69 (5%) had ≥3, ≥6, ≥9 and ≥12 months of post-index follow-up, respectively. The estimated PDC was 0.79 for all patients and 0.72 for those with ≥12 months of follow-up. Overall, 87% of patients persisted on secukinumab, with a mean of 154 days (standard deviation [SD]: 104) persistence prior to discontinuation. Among patients with ≥ 12 months follow-up, 74% were persistent, and the mean days to discontinuation were 295 [SD: 123]). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with plaque psoriasis initiating secukinumab were generally adherent to therapy as evidenced by PDC of nearly 80%. Almost three-quarters of patients persisted on treatment over 12 months.