One drug and two diseases: A case of multidrug-resistant hidradenitis suppurativa and psoriasis treated with apremilast

Hidradenitis suppurativa and psoriasis: the odd couple

Psoriasis and hidradenitis suppurativa are chronic inflammatory skin diseases that can develop together, negatively impacting on the patient's quality of life. We aimed to review the most up-to-date information regarding the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentation and possible therapeutical choices in patients with both psoriasis and hidradenitis suppurativa, thus linking these two autoimmune and autoinflammatory conditions. A narrative review of articles dating from 2017 to 2022 has been performed using the PubMed database. We analyzed the case reports and case series found in the literature regarding patients who suffered from both psoriasis and HS. Psoriasis arose before hidradenitis suppurativa in the majority of cases, while only a minority of them had hidradenitis suppurativa before psoriasis. Interestingly, some patients suffered from paradoxical hidradenitis suppurativa following biological therapy administered to treat the already present psoriasis. Lastly, new biological drugs have been marketed with great success for the outcome of psoriasis, but similar progress did not happen for hidradenitis. Novel therapeutic approaches and lines of research are needed for the treatment of these pathologies, even if concomitant, in order to improve patient's quality of life.

Emerging Treatments and the Clinical Trial Landscape for Hidradenitis Suppurativa Part I: Topical and Systemic Medical Therapies

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is an oftentimes debilitating condition that presents with painful nodules, abscesses, and sinus tracts. This condition is challenging to treat, in part because the pathogenesis of the condition is incompletely understood but also because there are limited therapeutic options. HS research is undergoing explosive growth with multiple new molecular pathways under study, which will hopefully lead to improved disease control for patients. Part I of this review will provide an overview of the emerging topical and systemic therapies under investigation for HS.

Insights into the Pathogenesis of HS and Therapeutical Approaches

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a debilitating, chronic, (auto)inflammatory disease primarily affecting apocrine gland-rich areas of the body. Although pathogenic mechanisms responsible for HS have not yet been fully elucidated, it is a multifactorial process whose main target is the terminal follicle. The role of the inflammatory process (and consequently of cytokine milieu) and of several other factors (genetics, lifestyle, hormonal status, microbiome, innate and adaptive immune systems) involved in HS pathogenesis has been investigated (and often defined) over the years with a view to transferring research results from bench to bedside and describing a unique and universally accepted pathogenetic model. This review will update readers on recent advances in our understanding of HS pathogenesis and novel (potential) medical therapies for patients with moderate-to-severe HS.

Coprevalence of Hidradenitis Suppurativa and Psoriasis: Detailed Demographic, Disease Severity and Comorbidity Pattern

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) and plaque psoriasis (Pso) are supposed to have a coprevalence. However, data showing a more detailed description of patients with both diseases are rare. In this study, we characterized patients with both skin diseases in terms of onset, disease course, severity, concomitant diseases and therapeutical management.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Data from 28 patients with a confirmed codiagnosis of HS and Pso from 2 university hospitals presented between 2015 and 2019 were evaluated retrospectively. For further characterization, patients were divided into different cohorts depending on whether HS or Pso was diagnosed as the first disease.

RESULTS

The average age of patients with a coprevalence of both diseases was 44.4 years with a female/male ratio of 1:1.15. Fifteen patients were diagnosed first with HS at an average age of 22.8 years, 13 patients first showed symptoms of Pso at a mean age of 21.7 years. The average time to the onset of the corresponding second disease was 14.3 years. Patients with HS as first disease showed a significantly severer form of HS compared to patients with a first diagnosis of Pso (mean highest International Hidradenitis Suppurativa Severity Score System: 23.5 vs. 8.2; p = 0.02). Severity of psoriatic disease in patients with HS at first diagnosis was numerically lower but not significant compared to the cohort with Pso at first diagnosis (mean highest Psoriasis Area and Severity Index: 7.8 vs. 13.2; p = 0.299). The most frequent comorbidity in all patients was obesity (64.3%; mean body mass index: 32.2) followed by psychiatric complaints (25%) and psoriatic arthritis (21.4%). Adalimumab was the most commonly used drug that had a positive effect on both diseases, HS and Pso.

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with a coprevalence of HS and Pso, the disease which occurs first appears to take a severer course, with an increased risk of development of obesity and psychiatric comorbidity in both cohorts.