Prescribing Patterns Associated With Biologic Therapies for Psoriasis from a United States Medical Records Database

INTRODUCTION: Selecting a systemic therapy for patients with psoriasis is a complex process, based on a variety of factors including psoriasis severity, comorbid health conditions, access to care, and both patient and provider preference. The objective of this study was to use data from electronic health records to understand prescribing patterns associated with biologic therapies for psoriasis and utilization of concomitant non-biologic psoriasis therapies in patients on biologics. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was performed using OptumInSight’s electronic health records database. Patients were classified as having psoriasis if they had 2 diagnosis codes for psoriasis or 1 diagnosis for psoriasis and a subsequent prescription for a systemic psoriasis therapy or phototherapy on a separate day. Only patients with at least 1 prescription for a biologic medication were included. The time between the first and last prescription in each prescription episode was calculated; at least 1 prescription every 180 days was required to be considered continuous therapy. We also identified a subgroup of patients with prescription episodes of at least 12 months duration in which to evaluate concomitant use of topical medications, phototherapy, and other systemic agents in patients receiving prescriptions for biologics. RESULTS: There were 34,714 eligible psoriasis patients. The median time between first and last prescriptions was 3.3 - 7.0 months, depending on the drug and up to 50% of patients that received a prescription for a biologic medication did not receive a second prescription for the same medication. In a subset of patients with prescription episodes of at least 12 months duration, more than 50% continued to receive prescriptions for topical therapies, most commonly topical steroids. DISCUSSION: Recognition of prescribing patterns associated with biologic medications for psoriasis is important to understand healthcare utilization and improve health systems practices for patients and providers.