Cross-Cultural Validation of the RECAP of Atopic Eczema Question-naire in a Swedish Population.

A Swedish translation of the patient-reported outcome measure for assessing long-term control of atopic dermatitis, Recap of atopic eczema (RECAP), has not been validated. Cross-cultural translation and multi-centre validation of the translated RECAP questionnaire were therefore performed. Disease severity was assessed using the validated Investigator Global Assessment Scale for atopic dermatitis (vIGA-ADTM). The Swedish RECAP was completed by 208 individuals aged 16 years or older with a median age of 36 years (interquartile range [IQR] 27-48). The participants considered the questionnaire suitable for assessing eczema control. The median RECAP score (range 0-28) was 12 (IQR 5-19). The mean and median vIGA-ADTM scores (range 0-4) were 2 (standard deviation [SD] 2) and 3 (IQR 2-4), respectively. A correlation between RECAP and the vIGA-ADTM was observed (p < 0.001). There was no significant change in scores for participants who answered the questionnaire twice within 14 days. Over time, improved or worsened eczema, as evaluat-ed by vIGA-ADTM, affected RECAP scores significantly (p < 0.001). The study suggests that RECAP can assess AD control in a Swedish clinical setting and shows -acceptable reliability.

Establishment and Utility of SwedAD: A Nationwide Swedish Registry for Patients with Atopic Dermatitis Receiving Systemic Pharmacotherapy.

SwedAD, a Swedish nationwide registry for patients with atopic dermatitis receiving systemic pharmacotherapy, was launched on 1 September 2019. We describe here the establishment of a user-friendly registry to the benefit of patients with atopic dermatitis. By 5 November 2022, 38 clinics had recorded 931 treatment episodes in 850 patients with an approximate national coverage rate of 40%. Characteristics at enrolment included median Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) 10.2 (interquartile range 4.0, 19.4), Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM) 18.0 (10.0, 24.0), Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) 11.0 (5.0, 19.0) and Peak Itch Numerical Rating Scale-11 (NRS-11) 6.0 (3.0, 8.0). At 3 months, median EASI was 3.2 (1.0, 7.3) and POEM, DLQI, and NRS-11 were improved. Regional coverage varied, reflecting the distribution of dermatologists, the ratio of public to private healthcare, and difficulties in recruiting certain clinics. This study highlights the importance of a nationwide registry when managing systemic pharmacotherapy of atopic dermatitis.

Enhanced Inflammasome Activity in Patients with Psoriasis Promotes Systemic Inflammation.

Psoriasis is linked to systemic inflammation and cardiovascular comorbidities, but studies of the underlying cellular mechanisms are lacking. The NLRP3 inflammasome is genetically associated with psoriasis, and its activation is increasingly linked with cardiovascular disease. In this study, we show that patients with psoriasis exhibited higher plasma levels of inflammasome-generated IL-1ß and IL-18, without any correlation to skin lesion severity. Increased constitutive expression of the inflammasome sensors NLRP3, NLRP1, and AIM2 was found in peripheral blood cells of the patients and also of those with mild disease, and this was accompanied by an increased caspase-1 reactivity in the myeloid blood subsets. TNF-α was found to activate selectively the NLRP3 inflammasome without the requirement for a priming signal. TNF-α was found to signal through the TNFR‒caspase-8‒caspase-1 alternative inflammasome pathway, which proceeds independently of pyroptosis. Patients who received anti-TNF therapy had normalized plasma IL-1ß and IL-18 levels as well as normalized caspase-1 reactivity. This was in contrast to the patients treated with methotrexate who exhibited persistent, increased caspase-1 reactivity. Thus, we show that the TNF-α-mediated activation of NLRP3 inflammasomes in patients with psoriasis may contribute to systemic inflammation. Anti-TNF therapy normalized inflammasome function, suggesting a mechanism for the cardiovascular risk‒reducing effect.

Decreased Systemic Levels of Endocan-1 and CXCL16 in Psoriasis Are Restored following Narrowband UVB Treatment.

BACKGROUND: In psoriasis, a common immune-mediated disease affecting 2-3% of the population worldwide, there is an increased prevalence of extracutaneous diseases including obesity, the metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. This is believed to be linked to systemic inflammation. In previous studies, we have explored various markers in plasma and serum to characterize the ongoing systemic inflammation in psoriasis patients compared to controls. We have identified several markers that were altered in psoriasis patients, but which all were unresponsive to narrowband UVB (NB-UVB) treatment. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of NB-UVB treatment on markers of cardiovascular risk and systemic inflammation in psoriasis. METHODS: The levels of 17 potential biomarkers with an association with cardiovascular risk were quantitated in plasma from 37 age- and gender-matched psoriasis patients and controls at baseline and in 21 psoriasis patients after 12 weeks of NB-UVB treatment to identify a systemic treatment response. RESULTS: We identified the mediators endocan-1, CXCL16, and sVEGFR1, which were systemically decreased in psoriasis at baseline, as well as FABP3, FABP4, and sIL-1R1, which showed normal baseline levels. After 10-12 weeks of NB-UVB treatment, endocan-1 and CXCL16 were restored to normal levels, while sVEGFR1, FABP3, FABP4, and sIL-1R1 showed a significant reduction. CONCLUSION: The current study expands the number of potential biomarkers in psoriasis by including a greater number and variety of mediators, approaching the systemic inflammation from additional vantage points, including soluble immune receptors and adipocyte contribution, to provide a more complete picture of the systemic inflammatory state in psoriasis.

Systemic treatment and narrowband ultraviolet B differentially affect cardiovascular risk markers in psoriasis.

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis is associated with a systemic inflammation and an increased frequency of the metabolic syndrome, both of which are believed to link psoriasis to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to investigate the systemic expression of markers of cardiovascular risk and determine their response to ultraviolet B therapy and treatment with the tumor necrosis factor-alfa inhibitor, etanercept. METHODS: Six markers of cardiovascular risk were measured in 28 patients with psoriasis and 28 control subjects. RESULTS: Five of the 6 investigated markers were elevated in patients with psoriasis. Four of these correlated to the body mass index and waist-hip ratio, suggesting a link to the metabolic syndrome. Total plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 remained elevated independently of these factors. The levels of the investigated risk markers decreased considerably after tumor necrosis factor-alfa inhibitor treatment but remained unaffected by ultraviolet therapy. LIMITATIONS: A relatively limited study population and nonrandomization are limitations. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that the choice of treatment in psoriasis may influence the cardiovascular risk in patients with psoriasis and the metabolic syndrome.

Systemically elevated Th1-, Th2- and Th17-associated chemokines in psoriasis vulgaris before and after ultraviolet B treatment.

Chemokines may contribute to the systemic inflammation that is linked to the increased risk of co-morbidities in patients with psoriasis. The aim of this study was to investigate circulating chemokines in patients with psoriasis and their relationship to disease severity. Analysis of plasma levels of chemokines in patients with psoriasis before narrowband ultraviolet B (UVB) therapy revealed increased expression of Th1-associated CXCL9 and -10, Th2-associated CCL17 and CCL22, and Th17-associated CCL20. CCL20 correlated with disease severity. UVB therapy reduced skin symptoms, but did not affect the chemokine levels in plasma. Anti-CD3 and anti-CD28-mediated activation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) caused a higher secretion of Th2 cytokine interleukin (IL)-13 by PBMCs from patients with psoriasis than from healthy controls. The sustained high expression of inflammatory chemokines is a potential link to systemic inflammation in psoriasis. UVB therapy may be a more effective treatment of local rather than systemic inflammation.