Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin condition which affects 2-3% of population around the world. Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) is a gold standard to assess psoriasis severity as well as the treatment efficacy. Although a gold standard, PASI is rarely used because it is tedious and complex. In practice, PASI score is determined subjectively by dermatologists, therefore inter and ...

BACKGROUND Chronic plaque-type psoriasis is a major dermatosis, but a significant question is still unanswered: What defines severity in chronic plaque-type psoriasis? While objective assessments like the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) have frequently been used in clinical trials, quality of life (QOL) questionnaires are currently becoming more and more popular. OBJECTIVE This artic...

BACKGROUND Etanercept plus methotrexate combination therapy has not been adequately investigated in psoriasis. OBJECTIVES To evaluate etanercept plus methotrexate vs. etanercept monotherapy in patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis who had not failed prior methotrexate or tumour necrosis factor-inhibitor therapy. METHODS Patients received etanercept 50 mg twice weekly for 12 week...

BACKGROUND Few studies have directly compared the clinical efficacy of psoralen plus ultraviolet A (PUVA) vs. biologics in the treatment of psoriasis. OBJECTIVES To compare the clinical efficacy of PUVA and biologic therapies for psoriasis under daily life conditions. METHODS Data from a psoriasis registry (http://www.psoriasis-therapieregister.at) of 172 adult patients with moderate to sev...

BACKGROUND Few clinical trials have evaluated the efficacy and safety of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F (TwHF) compared with acitretin in psoriasis. We aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of TwHF compared with acitretin in the treatment of moderate to severe psoriasis vulgaris. METHODS Adults with Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) score ≥ 10 and psoriasis-affected body surface area ≥ 1...

BACKGROUND Topical corticosteroids are used with systemic therapies for treatment of plaque psoriasis, but data from randomized clinical trials to document efficacy of combination therapy are lacking. OBJECTIVE To evaluate efficacy and safety of adding topical corticosteroid therapy from the time that etanercept dosage is reduced from initial label dose [50 mg twice weekly (BIW)] to maintenan...

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic disease with multiple biochemical and vascular abnormalities. Several studies have evaluated circulating levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in psoriasis, but none of them evaluated it after reaching a PASI-75 response, as a practical treatment goal. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum levels of VEGF in moderate to severe psoriatic pati...