Discovering Dermatology Times: March 2024 Enhancing Psoriasis Management Supplement

The March Frontline Forum supplement of Dermatology Times includes a collection of thought-provoking discussions and strategies surrounding the challenges and opportunities to enhance psoriasis management from Linda Stein Gold, MD; Mona Shahriari, MD; Michael Cameron, MD; Leon Kircik, MD; and George Han, MD. Be sure to take a look at the highlights from the supplement below. Also, don’t miss a moment of Dermatology Times by signing up for our eNewsletters and subscribing to receive the free print issue and supplement each month.

Part 1

As the understanding of psoriasis continues to evolve, the imperative of personalized care has gained prominence, reshaping the traditional paradigms of treatment. In the recent Dermatology Times custom video series “Advancements in Psoriasis Care: Navigating Emerging Therapies and Guidelines,” experts in the management of skin conditions discussed the latest developments in plaque psoriasis management. The panel discussion included Linda Stein Gold, MD, of Henry Ford Health in Detroit, Michigan; Mona Shahriari, MD, of Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut; Michael Cameron, MD, of Cameron Dermatology in New York, New York; Leon Kircik, MD, of Derm Research, PLLC, in Louisville, Kentucky; and George Han, MD, of Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. The conversation shed light on the evolving paradigms, evidence-based approaches, and need for individualized care in managing this condition.

Navigating Regimen Complexity and Patient-Friendly Adherence Strategies

Stein Gold emphasized the challenges posed by complex treatment regimens and said, “The use of complex regimens with multiple topical agents can lead to lower adherence and less effective treatment.” This sentiment underscores the critical need to streamline treatment approaches to enhance patient adherence and optimize treatment outcomes.

The panelists also highlighted the impact of treatment complexity on patient adherence, with Cameron noting, “The more complex the regimen is, the lower the adherence, which means we’re less effectively [managing] the disease.” This insight underscores the direct correlation between treatment complexity and patient adherence, emphasizing the need for streamlined and patient-friendly regimens.

Furthermore, Shahriari said, “It’s really a matter of simplifying the treatment regimen.” This sentiment underscores the need to reevaluate treatment approaches and streamline regimens to enhance patient adherence and treatment efficacy.

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Part 2

Unique Needs of Patients With Skin of Color

The panel delved into the specific needs of patients with melanin-rich skin and provided valuable insights into optimizing psoriasis care for this patient population. They noted that some patients have expressed distrust in the health care system or experience with clinical trials and may prefer topical treatments over systemic agents.

“When it comes to putting [patients with skin of color] on a systemic agent, a lot of them have distrust in the health care system or experience with clinical trials. They don’t always want to go on a systemic [treatment],” Shahriari said. “They’d rather go on a topical [treatment], and [with] our older-generation special topical corticosteroids, a big concern was hypopigmentation or other pigmentary alterations. In the scalp, the formulations we had weren’t ideal for tightly coiled hairs.”

The panel also discussed the potential risk of hypopigmentation and other pigmentary alterations with older topical corticosteroids and the need for newer formulations. “We want to simplify the treatment regimen. We want to pay attention to skin of color and the hypopigmentation that can come from topical steroids,” Stein Gold explained. “We want to do a more holistic treatment for the patients [with] psoriasis where we can treat short term as well as a long term. It doesn’t mean we won’t use combination therapy with these new topicals, combination with topical steroids or systemic agents, but I think they’re [an] important addition to the treatment arm in this area.”

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Part 3

Tailoring Treatment to Patient Needs

The panel emphasized the importance of tailoring treatment plans to meet the specific needs of each patient. Stein Gold highlighted the need for a patient-centered approach, stating, “We need to consider the individual patient’s preferences, treatment history, disease severity, comorbidities, and lifestyle factors when developing a treatment plan.”

This patient-centric approach was further emphasized by Han, who discussed the diverse options available for individualized treatment, stating, “We have 12 biologics for plaque psoriasis on the market, with the newest one hitting the market in 2023. So we have a wide range of options to consider for tailoring treatment to each patient’s unique needs.”

The panelists discussed the considerations involved in selecting the most appropriate treatment for each patient. Shahriari highlighted the need to consider factors such as treatment history, response to previous therapies, disease severity, and the presence of comorbid conditions. “When developing an individualized treatment plan, we need to carefully assess the patient’s previous treatment experiences, including responses and adverse events, to make informed decisions about the most suitable treatment approach,” she said. Kircik emphasized the importance of considering the full range of available treatments, stating, “Regardless of the treatment modality, whether it’s biologics, oral systemic medications, or topicals, we need to consider the combination of treatments to address the unique needs of each patient.”

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Click here to view the full video program.

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