Publications by authors named "Astrid Schmieder"

Article Synopsis
  • Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) affects around 30% of psoriasis patients, and the study explores how an interdisciplinary dermatological-rheumatological consultation (IDRC) can enhance diagnosis and treatment.
  • In a cohort of 202 psoriasis patients, 115 with musculoskeletal symptoms participated in face-to-face evaluations, resulting in 56 being diagnosed with definite PsA, which was linked to long diagnostic delays and psychosocial challenges.
  • The IDRC showed positive outcomes, significantly improving both objective and subjective disease measures while reducing the time needed for consultations, indicating a more efficient approach to managing PsA.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) have recently been approved alongside tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) and interleukin-17 inhibitors (IL-17i) as treatment options for axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), yet their real-world drug survival is under-studied.
  • A retrospective analysis of 1,222 axSpA patients, focusing on treatment initiation timing from January 2015 to October 2023, reveals median drug survival rates of 31 months for TNFi, 25 months for IL-17i, and 18 months for JAKi.
  • Higher discontinuation rates were seen for JAKi and IL-17i compared to TNFi, with
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Treatment options for psoriatic arthritis have expanded to include various biologic DMARDs and Janus kinase inhibitors, but real-world data on their persistence in patients is limited.
  • A study analyzed 1352 prescriptions and found that the 5-year survival rates were highest for IL-17 inhibitors (67.8%) and lowest for IL-12/23 inhibitors (46.0%), with JAKi showing a higher likelihood of discontinuation.
  • The findings suggest that patients in Germany may stick with TNFi and IL-17i longer than IL-12/23i or JAKi, potentially influenced by disease severity and other health conditions like osteoarthritis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Psoriasis vulgaris (PsV) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) are complex diseases that affect health and quality of life, and predicting treatment responses and disease progression remains a challenge despite its importance.
  • This study utilized automated machine learning (AutoML) to develop accurate predictive models to inform clinical decisions for patients with PsV and PsA, focusing on therapy changes and disease progression factors.
  • Results showed that the extreme gradient boosted trees classifier effectively predicted therapy changes at the 24-week mark, identifying key factors such as initial treatment type, baseline scores, and quality of life improvements, suggesting some treatments have a lower likelihood of needing adjustments.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) benefit from regular home-based exercise (HbE). In spite of recommendations, a relevant proportion of German axSpA patients does not adhere to recommended HbE practices. To enhance HbE care, we developed the novel digital therapeutic (DTx) "Axia" compliant with the European medical device regulation (MDR).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the rising issue of chronic wounds, especially in aging populations, and the increasing need for effective care, which could become costly and resource-intensive.
  • Researchers aimed to systematically identify and assess mobile apps designed for chronic wound patients, examining their quality from both patient and physician perspectives.
  • Out of 118 apps identified, only 3 met the study criteria; they received varied quality scores from physicians and patients, indicating a need for better support systems in managing chronic wounds.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Approximately 2% of the German population suffer from psoriasis. HybridVITA has developed a mobile application (app) that enables psoriasis patients to independently document the progression of the disease and the current psychological stress at home. The HybridVITA app was created in close collaboration with user groups to ensure optimal adaptation to their needs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Healthcare workers and medical students faced new challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Processes within many hospitals were completely disrupted. In addition, the face to face teaching of medical students was drastically reduced.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Rapid digitalization in health care has led to the adoption of digital technologies; however, limited trust in internet-based health decisions and the need for technical personnel hinder the use of smartphones and machine learning applications. To address this, automated machine learning (AutoML) is a promising tool that can empower health care professionals to enhance the effectiveness of mobile health apps.

Objective: We used AutoML to analyze data from clinical studies involving patients with chronic hand and/or foot eczema or psoriasis vulgaris who used a smartphone monitoring app.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Psoriatic arthritis (PsA), a disease with complex inflammatory musculoskeletal manifestations, complicates psoriasis in up to 30% of patients. In this study, we aimed to determine the effect of an interdisciplinary dermatological-rheumatological consultation (IDRC) for patients with psoriasis with musculoskeletal symptoms.

Methods: This prospective study enrolled 202 patients with psoriasis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: Changes in academic conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic are potential stressors for medical students and can make them vulnerable for the development of psychiatric disorders.Previous pandemics had a negative impairment on well-being due to social isolation and the perceived threat, an increase in fear, anger and frustration and an increase in post-traumatic stress disorder among health professionals. Therefore, this study examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical students' mental health and possible psychological consequences.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In previous pan-/epidemics such as the SARS epidemic of 2002/2003, negative effects on the wellbeing and an increase in symptoms of depression and anxiety were observed in doctors due to social isolation and the threat they experienced. Therefore, it is feared that the COVID-19 pandemic will also have a negative impact on the mental health and quality of life of doctors.

Objective: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of physicians.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Chronic hand and foot eczema is a polyetiological dermatological condition. Patients experience pain, itching, and sleep disturbances and have a reduced quality of life. Skin care programs and patient education can improve the clinical outcome.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease. The visibility of erythematous plaques on the skin as well as the pain and itchiness caused by the skin lesions frequently leads to psychological distress in patients. Smartphone apps are widespread and easily accessible.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Psoriasis has a negative impact on patients' physical and mental health and can lead to anxiety and depression. Disease management strategies, including educational programs and eHealth devices, have been shown to improve health care for several chronic diseases. However, such disease management strategies are lacking in the routine care of patients with psoriasis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD) can be challenging and little is known about the sustainability of on- and off-label prescribed systemic therapies.

Objectives: To compare drug survival (DS) rates and reasons for drug discontinuation of cyclosporine A (CyA), dupilumab (DUP), azathioprine (AZA), methotrexate (MTX) and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) prescribed under real-world conditions.

Materials & Methods: In this retrospective study, 139 treatment courses for 94 adults with AD treated at two German dermatology departments were analysed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Anaphylactic sting reactions need a prompt management. A structured educational intervention for patients with insect sting allergy has not been implemented so far. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of a structured 90-min educational intervention for patients with insect sting allergy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Hymenoptera venom allergy (HVA) has a prevalence of 3% in adults. Although patients have no ongoing symptoms, they often suffer from an impairment of their psychological well-being and quality of life.

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze sex-specific differences regarding the psychological burden caused by this allergy and handling of the emergency medication.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease associated with a reduced life-quality. Severe disease forms put the patients at risk for life-treating cardiovascular events, metabolic, and other immune-mediated disorders. Psoriasis patients are often not sufficiently informed about their condition leading to suboptimal treatment adherence and, consequently, worse patient outcome.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF