[Janus kinase inhibitors : Indications, efficacy, uses, what should be taken into account?] / Januskinaseinhibitoren : Indikationen, Wirkung, Einsatz: Was ist zu beachten?

Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) represent an immunomodulatory targeted therapy in various dermatoses. Throughout the past few years, JAKi have been approved for atopic dermatitis (AD), psoriasis vulgaris (PSO), alopecia areata (AA), and vitiligo. Further indications are currently under investigation. In this article the various systenic and topical JAKi used in dermatology are being presented regarding their efficacy and safety profile. A specific focus will be set on handling with safety issues including screening and control measures during treatment with JAKi. In addition, future use of JAKi in various dermatological diseases for which nowadays only insufficient therapy options are available is being discussed.

Introduction of a Specific Dermatological Rehabilitation Programme for Patients with Chronic Pruritus: A Pilot Study.

Chronic pruritus is a common symptom, associated with several severe medical conditions, great psychological burden, and reduced quality of life. It also poses socio-economic challenges concerning patients' work loss and healthcare costs. In Germany, medical rehabilitation programmes represent an integral part of the medical care of patients with chronic inflammatory skin diseases. However, such programmes play only a rudimentary role in the treatment of other dermatological diseases, such as dermatological oncology, genetic skin diseases, and chronic pruritus. Therefore, a specific antipruritic dermatological rehabilitation programme was developed in cooperation between the Department of Dermatology of the Medical Rehabilitation Center Bad Bentheim and the Center for Chronic Pruritus of the University Hospital of Muenster, Germany. This prospective study compared short-term patient-reported outcomes (n = 121) at the beginning and end of the rehabilitation programme. The majority of subjects had chronic pruritus on primary diseased, inflamed skin. Significant improvements in pruritus intensity (p ≤ 0.001), quality of life (p ≤ 0.001), anxiety symptoms (p ≤ 0.001) and depression (p ≤ 0.001), as well as an overall patient-relevant benefit (Patient Benefit Index 2.6 ± 1.06) and treatment-related patients' satisfaction, were shown. This suggests that implementation of this standardized rehabilitation programme for treatment of patients with chronic pruritus was successful.

How important is subjective well-being for patients? A qualitative interview study of people with psoriasis.

PURPOSE: This qualitative study aimed to investigate the importance of subjective well-being (SWB) as an outcome of psoriasis treatment from patient's perspective. We focused on the affective component of SWB as assessed with the Daily Experience Sampling Questionnaire (DESQ), a validated daily diary. METHODS: Semi-structured qualitative telephone interviews were conducted with in-patients of a dermatological rehabilitation clinic, after participants had completed the DESQ for up to seven days to get familiar with the concept of SWB. Patients were asked to reflect on the importance of SWB as treatment goal and on its relative importance as compared with other treatment outcomes. We also addressed whether SWB could be an indirect measure of benefit in that it reflects other important outcomes. Transcripts were analyzed using content analysis. RESULTS: Eleven patients participated (24-63 years, mean 53 years, 8 male, 3 female). Participants uniformly confirmed that changes in SWB reflected treatment benefit. All but one considered SWB to be a central aspect of treatment benefit-either as the most important treatment goal or as an indirect benefit indicator. In particular, participants described positive associations of SWB with other outcomes, such as symptoms. They reported that both the disease and the medical treatment had an impact on their SWB, which was reflected in the DESQ. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that SWB is a relevant indicator of treatment benefit for patients with psoriasis. Therefore, SWB measures, such as the DESQ, could be used to operationalize patient-relevant benefit of psoriasis treatment, complementing outcome measures currently used.

[Influence of an adjuvant treatment with an emollient containing 10 % urea, ceramides, glycerin und glyceryl glucoside in patients with psoriasis vulgaris]. / Einfluss einer adjuvanten Basistherapie mit 10 % Urea, Ceramiden, Glycerin und Glyceryl Glucoside bei Patienten mit Psoriasis vulgaris.

BACKGROUND: Guidelines generally recommend an adjuvant treatment with emollients for patients suffering from psoriasis. However evidence for this purpose is limited. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We performed a prospective observational study with an emollient containing 10% urea, ceramides, glycerin and glyceryl glucoside in patients suffering from mild to moderate psoriasis. The patients had to be stable for at least 12 weeks on prior antipsoriatic therapy including topical therapy, systemic treatment or phototherapy which was continued during the trial. RESULTS: A 4-week daily application of the emollient resulted in significant improvement regarding quality of life (measured by DLQI, Dermatology Life Quality Index) and clinical outcome (measured by local PASI, Psoriasis Area and Severity Index) among the treated patients. CONCLUSION: The trial results show that a daily adjuvant treatment with emollients can support a basic antipsoriatic therapy both in aspects of clinical efficacy and quality of life in mild to moderate patients suffering from psoriasis.

EMR-integrated minimal core dataset for routine health care and multiple research settings: A case study for neuroinflammatory demyelinating diseases.

Although routine health care and clinical trials usually require the documentation of similar information, data collection is performed independently from each other, resulting in redundant documentation efforts. Standardizing routine documentation can enable secondary use for medical research. Neuroinflammatory demyelinating diseases (NIDs) represent a heterogeneous group of diseases requiring further research to improve patient management. The aim of this work is to develop, implement and evaluate a minimal core dataset in routine health care with a focus on secondary use as case study for NIDs. Therefore, a draft minimal core dataset for NIDs was created by analyzing routine, clinical trial, registry, biobank documentation and existing data standards for NIDs. Data elements (DEs) were converted into the standard format Operational Data Model, semantically annotated and analyzed via frequency analysis. The analysis produced 1958 DEs based on 864 distinct medical concepts. After review and finalization by an interdisciplinary team of neurologists, epidemiologists and medical computer scientists, the minimal core dataset (NID CDEs) consists of 46 common DEs capturing disease-specific information for reuse in the discharge letter and other research settings. It covers the areas of diagnosis, laboratory results, disease progress, expanded disability status scale, therapy and magnetic resonance imaging findings. NID CDEs was implemented in two German university hospitals and a usability study in clinical routine was conducted (participants n = 16) showing a good usability (Mean SUS = 75). From May 2017 to February 2018, 755 patients were documented with the NID CDEs, which indicates the feasibility of developing a minimal core dataset for structured documentation based on previously used documentation standards and integrating the dataset into clinical routine. By sharing, translating and reusing the minimal dataset, a transnational harmonized documentation of patients with NIDs might be realized, supporting interoperability in medical research.