Treatments for Plaque Psoriasis

A report published in January 2014 identified several gaps in psoriasis research and recommended research targets to address these gaps.

Getting patients to use their prescriptions is another story-one that's shockingly understudied in dermatology. Just what works to improve medication adherence has stumped researchers outside dermatology. Several studies are cited.

Data from a recently published study reveal systemic steroids are often the choice of therapy for clinicians based in the US who treat psoriasis, yet this practice is not endorsed in clinical practice guidelines.

Key trends among topical treatments for psoriasis include the potential reformulation of systemic therapies into topical form, the search for steroid alternatives and the optimization of vehicles, an expert says.

A patient with psoriasis asks dermatologists to put themselves in their patients' shoes and look at the condition from that perspective.

Richard D. Granstein, M.D., chairman of dermatology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, has conducted research on how the nervous system and, perhaps, stress can make psoriasis worse or control the phenotypic expression of psoriasis.

The psychiatric comorbidities associated with psoriasis deserve more attention from physicians around the globe, experts say.

Many doctors, including dermatologists, would rather not address patients’ feelings about psoriasis. It’s part of how dermatologists protect themselves from bearing the burdens of patients’ woes, according to Richard Fried, M.D., Ph.D., a dermatologist and clinical psychologist in Yardley, Pennsylvania.

Psoriasis in nonwhite patient populations is not well described, according to Andrew F. Alexis, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Skin of Color Center, at St. Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital, Mount Sinai Health System, New York.

Common gastrointestinal side effects to methotrexate may include anticipatory, associative and behavioral symptoms, aside from post-treatment nausea and vomiting, according to a new report.

Recent head-to-head clinical trial results with secukinumab (Novartis) and etanercept (Enbrel, Amgen) show a significant superiority of secukinumab in the treatment and management of patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, perhaps heralding a new standard of care for this patient population.

The human interleukin-12 and interleukin-23 (IL-12/IL-23) inhibitor ustekinumab (Stelara, Janssen) is effective and is well tolerated in patients who have active psoriatic arthritis.

Up to 30 percent of patients with psoriasis do not seek medical care for their skin condition, patient surveys show.

The rate of adverse events in patients using adalimumab remains low over time, with infections indicated as the most common adverse event, according to a study.

People who live with psoriasis have a higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease.

A new smartphone application from the American Academy of Dermatology provides evidence-based clinical guidelines for treating patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.