A recent literature review on psoriasis in patients with skin of color (SOC) “invokes an important call to action by the [International Psoriasis Council],” its authors wrote I the International Journal of Dermatology.
“Education on diagnosing and treating psoriasis in all populations, including patients with SOC, must be prioritized,” Maria-Angeliki Gkini, MD, MSc, PhD, et al wrote. “Creating optimal educational materials, including educational photo galleries of all skin tones, is vital to improving the early treatment of psoriasis worldwide. ‘Hot topic’ discussions among experts are essential to developing internationally accepted nomenclature and definitions regarding what is designated as SOC, geographic ancestry, and race and to relate psoriasis to well-defined populations according to agreed definitions. Future research on psoriasis in people with SOC can be harmonized based on such standards.”
The literature review aimed to provide an evidence-based update on the characteristics of psoriasis in individuals with SOC because of the historically limited psoriasis data in that population. A literature search was conducted from January 2018 until August 2023 in Pubmed/MEDLINE/Cochrane Library and identified studies with I-III level of evidence using Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine recommendations.
“Multiple factors (including biological and non-biological) contribute to differences in clinical features and therapeutic nuances in patient populations with SOC,” the authors wrote. “The prevalence of plaque psoriasis is lower in people with SOC but tends to be more severe. People with SOC are less likely to receive biologic treatment. Although the QoL impact of psoriasis is worse in populations with SOC than in White populations, more research is needed to elucidate variations in presentation and impact across diverse populations.”