Top 5 psoriasis developments in 2015

Research presented at the American Academy of Dermatology Annual Meeting and World Congress of Dermatology was among 2015’s most-read articles in Healio.com/Dermatology related to psoriasis

Other widely read articles included study results finding that patients with psoriasis were at greater risk for developing arrhythmia:

Survey finds Humira most prescribed biologic for treating psoriasis compared with Enbrel

A survey by Decision Resources Group found that Humira was the biologic most prescribed for moderate-to-severe psoriasis when compared with Enbrel, according to a press release.

However, Enbrel (etanercept, Amgen/Pfizer) had a more favorable reimbursement environment compared with Humira (adalimumab, AbbVie), according to the release. Read more

Researcher: Vitiligo comorbidities include thyroid disease, alopecia, psoriasis and lupus

SAN FRANCISCO — In this video, Iltefat Hamzavi, MD, FAAD, senior staff physician at Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, discusses research he presented on vitiligo and comorbid autoimmune diseases.

“We know that vitiligo is associated with multiple diseases, but we haven’t been able to quantify it,” Hamzavi told Healio.com/Dermatology at the American Academy of Dermatology Annual Meeting. Read more

Patients with psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis at greater risk for developing arrhythmia

Patients with psoriasis, and particularly those with psoriatic arthritis, were at increased risk of developing arrhythmia, independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors, according to study results.

Researchers conducted a population-based cohort study and used the Taiwan Health Insurance Research Database to identify 40,367 patients with psoriasis and 162,548 people without psoriasis (controls) from 2004 to 2006. Read more

Psoriasis therapies dominate first late-breaking research session at AAD

SAN FRANCISCO – Seven of the first 10 late-breaking research abstracts presented at the American Academy of Dermatology Annual Meeting focused on new therapies being investigated for the treatment of psoriasis.

Joel Gelfand

“We’re making major progress in people with psoriasis,” Joel Gelfand, MD, a moderator of the research session, told Healio.com/Dermatology. “The newer drugs coming to market all seem to have much higher clearance rates than we ever thought imaginably possible. These are major advances in care for the care of the patients.” Read more

Ixekizumab leads to plaque psoriasis resolution, improves quality of life

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Patients who achieved near complete resolution of plaque psoriasis with ixekizumab treatment had greater improvement in quality of life, according to research presented at the World Congress of Dermatology.

Chris Griffiths, BSc, MD, foundation professor and chair of dermatology at the University of Manchester, United Kingdom, reported that while “currently [Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI)] score 75 is considered a good treatment goal for psoriasis symptoms,” individuals not achieving complete resolution of skin may have continued impairment of health-related quality of life. Read more