The Clinical Profile of Patients with Psoriasis in Korea: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study (EPI-PSODE)

Abstract

Background: Psoriasis is an immune-mediated, chronic inflammatory disease affecting multiple aspects of patients' lives. Its epidemiology varies regionally; however, nationwide epidemiologic data on psoriasis depicting profile of Korean patients has not been available to date. Objective: To understand nationwide epidemiologic characteristics and clinical features of adult patients with psoriasis visited university hospitals in Korea. Methods: This multicenter, non-in terventional, cross-sectional study recruited 1,278 adult patients with psoriasis across 25 centers in Korea in 2013. Various clinical data including PASI, BSA, DLQI, SF-36 and PASE were collected. Results: A total of 1,260 patients completed the study (male:female = 1.47:1). The mean age was 47.0 years with a distribution mostly in the 50s (24.9 k). Early onset (<40 years) of psoriasis accounted for 53.9% of patients. The mean disease duration was 109.2 months; mean body mass index was 23.9 kg/m(2); and 12.7% of patients had a family history of psoriasis. Plaque and guttate types of psoriasis accounted for 85.8% and 8.4%, respectively. Patients with PASI >= 10 accounted for 24.9%; patients with body surface area >= 10 were 45.9%. Patients with DLQI >= 6 accounted for 78.8%. Between PASI < 10 and PASI >= 10 groups, significant difference was noted in age at diagnosis, disease duration, blood pressure, waist circumference of female, and treatment experiences with phototherapy, systemic agents, and biologics. Conclusion: This was the first nationwide epidemiologic study of patients with psoriasis in Korea and provides an overview of the epidemio-