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The burden of atopic dermatitis in Portuguese patients: an observational study.

ABSTRACT: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin condition that significantly affects patients' lives and imposes both economic and non-economic burdens. The precise societal and individual consequences of AD remain incompletely understood. This study aimed to characterize AD in Portuguese patients and assess its personal, familial, and societal implications, including health status and quality of life. The research, conducted from June 2019 to January 2020, involved 204 confirmed AD patients in Portugal, who completed a 70-question questionnaire. Results show that, on average, patients experienced a two-year delay in diagnosis, with two-thirds having allergic comorbidities. Late-onset AD (after age 20) was found to be correlated with worsening symptoms post-diagnosis. Globally, patients reported substantial effects on health, quality of life, and mental well-being. Effects include significant levels of anxiety, frustration and sleep disorders. Severe AD correlated with more suffering and reduced perceived health, indicating a link between disease severity and quality of life. Remarkably, despite questionable effectiveness, 92% of severe AD patients were prescribed antihistamines, while only 19% received biological treatments. In Portugal, delayed AD diagnosis hinders timely treatment, and despite its profound impact and high comorbidity rates, AD patients tend to remain undertreated. Recognizing the personal and societal repercussions is crucial for enhancing care, contributing to improving QoL, social functioning and global well-being.

SUBMITTER: Coelho PS

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10908846 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The burden of atopic dermatitis in Portuguese patients: an observational study.

Coelho Pedro S PS Apalhão Miguel M Victorino Guilherme G Cardoso Cristina C Camilo Joana J Silva João Maia JM

Scientific reports 20240302 1

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin condition that significantly affects patients' lives and imposes both economic and non-economic burdens. The precise societal and individual consequences of AD remain incompletely understood. This study aimed to characterize AD in Portuguese patients and assess its personal, familial, and societal implications, including health status and quality of life. The research, conducted from June 2019 to January 2020, involved 204 confirmed AD patient ...[more]

PMID: 38431751

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Project description:IntroductionSeveral clinical trials have established the efficacy and safety of dupilumab for treating atopic dermatitis (AD). However, literature remains scarce in reporting the long-term effectiveness, safety, and drug survival of dupilumab in real-world settings. This study aimed to describe the latter outcomes of dupilumab in patients with AD.MethodsThis Portuguese, multicentric, observational, retrospective study included consecutive adult patients with AD who initiated dupilumab between January 2019 and September 2023, with a follow-up period up to 30 months. Drug discontinuation and adverse effects data were used to estimate drug survival. Clinical assessments included the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI), pruritus numerical rating scale (NRS), and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI).ResultsA total of 312 patients were included in the study, with 56.4% being male (median age of 30 years, range 18-83). The 30-month drug survival rate was 82.0%. During the study period, 12.5% of the sample (n = 39 patients) discontinued treatment: 7.3% due to treatment failure, 2.9% due to safety concerns, 1.3% due to complete disease control, 0.6% due to pregnancy, and 0.3% due to lack of compliance. Adverse events not leading to drug discontinuation were noted in 25.6% of the sample (n = 80). Conjunctivitis was the most frequently reported adverse event (17%), followed by facial erythema (9%). At 30 months, the mean EASI decreased significantly from 27.30 ± 11.89 at baseline to 2.92 ± 3.96 (p < 0.001), reflecting an overall improvement of 89.3%. Similarly, pruritus NRS decreased from 7.36 ± 1.90 at baseline to 1.74 ± 2.16 at month 30 (p < 0.001), improving by 76.4%, and mean DLQI changed from 18.0 ± 7.09 at baseline to 2.67 ± 3.95 at month 30 (p < 0.001), decreasing by 85.2%.ConclusionsThis study increases our current understanding of dupilumab in real-world settings, demonstrating its long-term effectiveness and safety in treating AD.

Project description:BackgroundAtopic dermatitis (AD) is associated with itch, skin inflammation and barrier disruption, and scratching, all of which may be associated with skin pain.ObjectiveTo characterize the patient burden of skin pain in AD.MethodsWe performed a prospective dermatology practice-based study using questionnaires and evaluation by a dermatologist.ResultsOverall, 305 patients (age range, 13-97 years) were included in the study, with 564 encounters. The cohort included 195 females (63.9%) and 193 whites (63.7%). The mean (SD) age at enrollment was 42.3 (18.1) years, and the mean (SD) age of patient-reported AD onset was 29.6 (31.9) years. At baseline, 144 patients (42.7%) reported skin pain in the past week, with 42 (13.8%) reporting severe or very severe pain. Twenty-four (16.8%) thought the skin pain was part of their itch, 16 (11.2%) from scratching, and 77 (72.0%) from both. Patients with skin pain were more likely to describe their itch using terms that resembled neuropathic pain. Prevalence of skin pain was increased in patients with vs without excoriations (72.6% vs 57.6%; χ2 test P = .02) but not other morphologic characteristics. Skin pain severity was most strongly correlated with the Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (Spearman ρ = 0.54), followed by ItchyQOL (ρ = 0.52), 5-dimensions of itch scale (ρ = 0.47), Dermatology Life Quality Index (ρ = 0.45), numeric rating scale for itch (ρ = 0.43) and sleep (ρ = 0.36), Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (ρ = 0.36), patient-reported global AD severity (ρ = 0.34), Eczema Area and Severity Index (ρ = 0.23), and objective Scoring AD index (ρ = 0.20) (P < .001 for all). Patients with both severe itch and pain vs those with only one or neither symptom being severe had significant increases in all these measures.ConclusionSkin pain is a common and burdensome symptom in AD. Skin pain severity should be assessed with itch severity in AD patients and may be an important end point for monitoring treatment response.

Project description:IntroductionAtopic dermatitis (AD) is one of the most common inflammatory skin conditions in both children and adults. Despite this, contemporary descriptions of the incidence, prevalence and current management of the condition in the UK are lacking.Methods and analysisWe will perform a series of retrospective studies using a large population-based cohort derived from the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) Research and Surveillance Centre (RSC) network database to explore two key research themes: AD epidemiology and AD management.In the epidemiology theme, we will describe the incidence and prevalence of AD in children and adults in England from 2009 to 2018 inclusive. We will stratify findings by age, national Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD), ethnicity, urban-rural environment and geographic location; and explore independent associations of these features with AD in multivariable models.In the management theme, we will explore healthcare utilisation and treatment in people with AD. Regarding healthcare utilisation, we will evaluate rates of AD-associated primary care visits and specialist dermatology referrals in people with AD. Rates will be stratified by age, gender, socioeconomic IMD quintile and ethnicity. We will describe contemporary treatment by estimating prescribing rates across medication classes used in AD (emollients, topical corticosteroids by potency, topical calcineurin inhibitors, topical antimicrobials, antihistamines, oral corticosteroids and systemic immunomodulatory therapies) overall, and by age and sociodemographic groupings. We will also examine trends in prescribing over the study period. In people first diagnosed with AD during the study period, we will describe differences in treatment escalation by sociodemographic factors using time-to-event analysis.Ethics and disseminationThe Health Research Authority decision tool classed this a study of 'usual practice', ethics approval was not required. Study approval was granted by the RCGP RSC Study Approval Committee. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications.Trial registration numberNCT03823794.

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The burden of atopic dermatitis in Portuguese patients: an observational study.

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The burden of atopic dermatitis in Portuguese patients: an observational study.

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