Retrospective study of psoriasis in people living with HIV: Thailand's experience

Epidemiological analysis of the patients with psoriasis in Asian countries and region using the same clinical case cards between 2020 and 2022

Although many epidemiological surveys for patients with psoriasis have been reported based on individual countries or facilities, there has been no study encompassing the major countries or the region in Asia. The Asian Society for Psoriasis (ASP) has been conducting an epidemiological study across various Asian countries and regions to elucidate the and compare the epidemiology of psoriasis. A total of 1948 cases were analyzed, with 938 cases from Japan, 530 cases from China, 325 cases from Korea, 141 cases from Chinese Taipei, and 14 cases from Thailand, all of which were enrolled between 2020 and 2022. In the Asian region total, the male-female ratio was 1.87:1 and the peak age at disease onset was 20-29 years. The proportion of psoriasis vulgaris (PsV), psoriatic arthritis (PsA), and pustular psoriasis (PP) was 80.1%, 17.7%, and 2.2%, respectively, and PsA was more commonly associated with nail symptoms than psoriasis vulgaris (PsV). Of the patients, 13% had a familial history of psoriasis and the most frequently affected family member was the father. Regarding treatment, 78.3% of the patients received topical medications, 9.0% underwent phototherapy, 34.0% received oral medications, and 36.1% were treated with biological agents. This study provided valuable information on the epidemiology and treatment of psoriasis using the registry data collected with the common reporting form in the same period in major Asian countries and regions. Male predominance is a distinctive feature of psoriasis in Asia. This epidemiological data registry in the ASP will continue afterwards.

An analysis of psoriasis hospitalisation in Thailand

Psoriasis hospitalisation is not frequently reported. The objective of this study was to determine (1) the clinical, laboratory and treatment features of patients with psoriasis hospitalised due to flare-up and (2) other causes of admission of patients with psoriasis. We retrospectively reviewed data on 48 patients admitted due to psoriasis flare-up and 1908 patients with psoriasis admitted due to concomitant illnesses or comorbidities. The study period was 2005-2021. The latter group was compared with 821,804 patients without psoriasis admitted during the period. Of the 48 cases, 37.5% had erythroderma, and 62.5% had generalised pustular psoriasis (GPP). Women (68.8%) predominated, especially in the GPP group (76.7%). The mean age of admission with erythroderma (44.8 years) was higher than for GPP (32.1 years). Infection was the main trigger for psoriasis flare-up (46%). Abnormalities in liver function tests were found in 33.3% of the cases. These abnormalities usually subsided 1-2 months after skin improvement (83.4%). Acitretin was the most prescribed drug for GPP (81.4%), whereas topical treatment alone (50%) was the most frequent erythroderma therapy. Intensive care was needed by 9.3% of patients with GPP. In the psoriasis group admitted due to concomitant illnesses or comorbidities, admission due to digestive and infectious causes was significantly higher for psoriasis patients. Our study showed that trend of psoriasis admission due to disease flare-up was not significantly changed even in the era of biologics. We believed that patient education on avoiding the common precipitating factors of psoriasis flare-up and good self-care is mandatory to reduce the risk of hospitalisation.