Publications by authors named "Joseph F Merola"

Background: International Dermatology Outcome Measures (IDEOM) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve the availability of evidence-based, consensus-driven outcome measures for dermatological diseases. IDEOM facilitates collaboration between stakeholders from various backgrounds, including researchers, patients, physicians, and industry representatives, to develop objective benchmark metrics that enable better treatment and management of dermatologic conditions.

Summary: The 2023 IDEOM Annual Meeting was held June 23-24, 2023.

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Background: There are no validated methods to identify individuals with cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE) from large databases including claims data and electronic health records, severely limiting the study of the epidemiology of this disease.

Objectives: To develop and validate accurate algorithms to identify individuals with CLE from healthcare records.

Methods: Twelve case-finding algorithms were developed based on the International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 diagnosis codes, provider specialty, and medication prescription data.

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Introduction: Psoriasis in high-impact areas, including the scalp, nails, palms, and soles, can disproportionately impair patient quality of life. Here, we evaluate the 2-year efficacy of bimekizumab treatment in patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in post hoc analyses of five phase 3/3b trials.

Methods: High-impact area efficacy data were pooled through 2 years across five phase 3/3b trials: BE VIVID, BE READY, BE SURE, their ongoing open-label extension (OLE) BE BRIGHT, and BE RADIANT (including its double-blinded treatment period and the first year of its OLE).

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Objective: We sought to correlate the time lag between psoriatic arthritis (PsA) symptom onset and diagnosis to the likelihood and severity of depression, social impairment, and disease impact on quality of life.

Methods: This cross-sectional study conducted by the National Psoriasis Foundation (NPF) surveyed individuals with PsA using patient-reported outcome measures.

Results: The analysis cohort comprised 2,196 patients with PsA.

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Article Synopsis
  • Deucravacitinib is a new oral medication that selectively inhibits a protein involved in inflammatory processes, showing better results than a placebo in treating psoriatic arthritis during a phase 2 clinical trial.
  • In the trial, 203 patients were split into three groups: one received a placebo, while two groups received different doses of deucravacitinib. The study measured how many patients met the criteria for a state called "minimal disease activity" after 16 weeks.
  • Results indicated that more patients taking deucravacitinib achieved the necessary criteria for individual components of minimal disease activity compared to those on placebo, showing that the treatment was effective over the 16-week period.
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  • The phase 3 DISCOVER-2 trial evaluated the effectiveness of guselkumab in treating psoriatic arthritis (PsA), focusing on individual patient outcomes rather than just group trends.
  • Post hoc analyses showed that a high percentage (93% to 99%) of patients maintained significant clinical improvements in joint disease at scheduled dosing visits and sustained these improvements over time.
  • Guselkumab demonstrated long-lasting benefits, with many patients continuing to experience improvements 100 weeks after achieving clinical milestones, indicating its potential as a robust treatment option for PsA.
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  • Scientists are researching new medicines to help people with atopic dermatitis (AD), which is a type of skin condition.
  • They are checking how safe these new treatments are by looking at lots of patients and comparing different drugs.
  • So far, early results show that some medicines might cause more infections or acne compared to others, but they will keep studying to learn more about safety over time.
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  • The study aimed to evaluate the effects of bimekizumab on patient-reported outcomes and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for individuals with active psoriatic arthritis (PsA) over a 16-week period, using data from two phase 3 clinical trials.
  • Results showed that patients receiving bimekizumab experienced significant improvements in pain, fatigue, physical function, and HRQoL starting as early as week 4, with continuous benefits observed up to week 16 compared to those on placebo.
  • The findings suggest that bimekizumab leads to faster and more substantial enhancements in patient symptoms and overall quality of life in patients who are either new to biologic treatments or those with previous
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The Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis Clinics Multicenter Advancement Network (PPACMAN) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to optimize the clinical care of patients with psoriatic disease through multidisciplinary collaboration models. The PPACMAN 2021 Annual Meeting was held virtually on December 11, 2021. In all, 50 stakeholders participated in the meeting including dermatologists, rheumatologists, cardiologists, clinical researchers, patient advocacy representatives, and industry representatives.

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Article Synopsis
  • Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a chronic condition requiring ongoing treatment, and the monoclonal antibody bimekizumab specifically targets interleukin (IL)-17A and IL-17F, showing promising results over a two-year period.
  • Two clinical trials, BE OPTIMAL and BE COMPLETE, evaluated the safety and efficacy of bimekizumab in patients both new to biologic treatments and those with prior treatment failures.
  • Results revealed that bimekizumab was well tolerated, with no new safety concerns, and patients maintained significant improvements in PsA symptoms throughout the two years of treatment.
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Objectives: Oligoarticular psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is frequent but rarely studied. The objective was to assess the efficacy of apremilast in early oligoarticular PsA.

Methods: FOREMOST (NCT03747939) was a phase 4 multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

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The National Psoriasis Foundation surveyed a random, stratified sample of individuals with psoriatic disease in the United States to determine the prevalence of an unacceptable psoriatic arthritis (PsA) symptom state and its effect on depression and social participation. Acceptable and unacceptable levels of PsA were defined using established cutoff points (acceptable ≤4 vs unacceptable >4) on the Psoriatic Arthritis Impact of Disease 9. Psoriasis severity was defined by body surface area: mild < 3%, moderate-severe ≥ 3%.

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  • Lebrikizumab, a monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-13, was studied for its effects on immune responses to non-live vaccines in adults with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD).
  • The phase 3, double-blind study involved randomizing patients to receive either lebrikizumab or a placebo, with the main focus on responses to tetanus and meningococcal vaccines after 16 weeks.
  • Results indicated similar Tdap booster responses between both groups, but lebrikizumab patients showed a significantly higher rate of positive response to the meningococcal vaccine and better improvement in AD symptoms compared to the placebo group.
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During the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) 2023 annual meeting, the International Dermatology Outcome Measures (IDEOM) psoriatic disease (PsD) workgroup presented an update on their efforts toward measurement of musculoskeletal (MSK) symptoms in patients with PsD. Dr. Joseph Merola initiated the presentation emphasizing the vital importance of assessing MSK symptoms in patients with psoriasis (PsO) regardless of whether they have been diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis (PsA).

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Despite substantial evidence that methotrexate (MTX) has inferior efficacy, safety, and tolerability compared to newer systemic therapies, MTX remains one of the most commonly prescribed first-line systemic therapies for psoriatic arthritis worldwide and for psoriasis in some countries. At the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) 2023 annual meeting in Dublin, Ireland, Drs. William Tillett and Joseph Merola engaged in debate over whether MTX should be the first systemic therapy used in psoriatic disease (PsD).

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The nonprofit organization International Dermatology Outcome Measures (IDEOM) is committed to improving the implementation of patient-centered outcome measures in dermatologic disease. At a conference adjacent to the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) 2023 annual meeting, the IDEOM Psoriatic Disease Workgroup presented updates on recent efforts in outcome measure advancement. Dr.

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Article Synopsis
  • Psoriatic disease is often overlooked, so researchers created the Psorcast app, which uses smartphone sensors to let patients self-measure their skin and joint symptoms.
  • During the study, nearly half of the 104 participants had psoriatic arthritis, and the app showed a strong correlation with traditional physician assessments for skin involvement.
  • The app’s results are promising, but more research with larger groups is needed before it can be used more widely in clinical practice, and the technology is open-source for public access.
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  • * Early diagnosis and treatment of PsA can significantly improve patient outcomes and quality of life, making it crucial for healthcare providers to screen for this condition.
  • * Choosing the right therapy involves considering various factors like disease severity, patient preferences, coexisting conditions, and medication access, with a focus on addressing multiple aspects of the patient's psoriatic disease.
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Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is an inflammatory seronegative arthritis strongly associated with psoriasis. Recognition of the clinical features of PsA is critical, as delayed detection and untreated disease may result in irreparable joint damage, impaired physical function, and a significantly reduced quality of life. Dermatologists are poised for the early detection of PsA, as psoriasis predates its development in as many as 80% of patients.

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Objectives: Evaluate patterns of stringent disease control with 2 years of guselkumab across key disease-identified domains and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in subgroups of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) defined by baseline characteristics.

Method: This post hoc analysis of DISCOVER-2 (Clinicaltrials.gov NCT03158285) evaluated biologic-naïve PsA patients (≥ 5 swollen/ ≥ 5 tender joints, C-reactive protein [CRP] ≥ 0.

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Introduction: Skin involvement in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) worsens the severity and burden of disease. Ixekizumab (IXE), a selective interleukin (IL)-17A antagonist, was compared to placebo (PBO) in the SPIRIT-P1 (NCT01695239) and SPIRIT-P2 (NCT02349295) studies in patients with PsA and evidence of plaque psoriasis. This post hoc analysis reports musculoskeletal, skin, and nail outcomes through week 24 in patients from SPIRIT-P1 and SPIRIT-P2, stratified by mild, moderate, or psoriasis at baseline.

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