Psoriasis is Associated with a High Comedication Burden: A Population Based Register Study

Area of Science:

• Dermatology
• Pharmacology
• Public Health

Background:

• Psoriasis is linked to numerous comorbid diseases, yet comedication patterns are understudied.
• Understanding prescription trends for comorbidities in psoriasis patients is crucial for comprehensive care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate prescription and drug dispensation patterns for comorbidities in patients with psoriasis.
• To compare comedication use in psoriasis patients versus controls.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective case-control study using Swedish electronic medical records and drug registers (2008-2016).
• Identified patients with psoriasis (n=4587) and controls (n=268,949) using ICD-10 codes.
• Analyzed dispensed pharmaceutical prescriptions and calculated odds ratios for drug dispensations.

Main Results:

• Psoriasis patients had significantly more drug dispensations than controls (1.3% vs. 9.3% without prescriptions).
• Increased odds of receiving anxiolytics, sedatives, COPD, migraine, and erectile dysfunction medications.
• Commonly dispensed comedications included antibiotics and analgesics, with higher opioid risk; sex influenced drug group frequency.

Conclusions:

• Patients with psoriasis exhibit significantly higher rates of dispensed prescriptions for comorbid conditions.
• Findings confirm increased comorbidity burden and associated healthcare costs in psoriasis patients.