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New york – , but the opportunity for disease control and improvements in quality of life in the former are improving, according to an overview presented at the Skin of Color Update 2019.
Two studies published within the last 18 months that included large proportions of black patients have provided evidence that surgery is effective in those inadequately controlled on medical therapies, Theodore Rosen, MD, professor of dermatology at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, said at the meeting.
The best results were observed in a study that evaluated the impact of surgery and adjunctive biologic therapy, according to Dr. Rosen. Of the 68 patients, 59 (72%) were black (Int J Dermatol. 2018;57[1]:62-9). For those patients who received both surgery and biologic therapy, there was a nearly three times greater likelihood of achieving a 75% reduction in the active nodule count (AN75) after adjusting for covariates, compared with those who received only surgery (hazard ratio, 2.88; P = .047).
“It did not appear to matter which came first,” said Dr. Rosen, who is also chief of the dermatology service at Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Houston. He added, “this is a lot of work, and it is a lot of cost. It requires dedicated people, but it probably is the best thing we possibly do in difficult cases.”
In the other study cited by Dr. Rosen, a review of surgical procedures used to treat HS, the authors concluded that en bloc excision of HS was a better approach than less aggressive surgical approaches, such as drainage, because it lowered the risk of recurrences. This evaluation also included a substantial number of black patients, he said.
It is appropriate to consider black patients separately when discussing HS for a number of reasons. One is the evidence that the disease is more common in this population. Although Dr. Rosen cautioned that prevalence studies do not show this consistently, he believes the preponderance of evidence supports this assertion.
In addition, HS appears to be more severe in black patients. Many of the risk factors that predict a difficult course, such as obesity and diabetes, are more prevalent in the black population, Dr. Rosen said. He also cited a study that concluded HS imposes a larger overall negative impact on quality of life in nonwhite than in white patients (Skin Appendage Disord 2015 Sep;1[2]:65-73).
Despite the evidence that surgery plus biologics is an effective strategy for control of severe disease, there remains no standard approach – even for initial therapy, according to Dr. Rosen. Lifestyle modifications, such as weight loss and smoking cessation, are a starting point, but the order of the next best steps are unclear.
At many centers, biologics have been moved forward in the algorithm on the basis of two placebo-controlled trials that associated adalimumab with higher clinical response rates activity in HS (N Engl J Med. 2016 Aug 4;375[5]:422-34). But Dr. Rosen cautioned that this trial did not include many patients with skin of color, and failure rates are not insignificant.
Promising activity has been reported in HS with both anti–interleukin-17 therapies and apremilast, a phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) inhibitor, according to Dr. Rosen but this experience is limited overall and more so in black patients. He listed other drugs associated with benefit in cases studies, such as metformin, which deserve consideration when more conventional options fail, but he reiterated that there is no established ladder of therapies to consider in HS patients regardless of skin type.
Overall, treatment strategies are not different in nonwhite patients relative to white patients, but Dr. Rosen believes that the greater severity of HS in black individuals warrants attention. He noted, for example, that the risk of squamous cell carcinoma, which is elevated in HS patients overall, appears to be even higher in black patients with HS.
Although he did not advocate metformin or any of the other off-label treatments associated with efficacy in case studies, he acknowledged that “this may be where you have to go” when the devastating symptoms of HS remain uncontrolled.
Dr. Rosen reports no relevant financial relationships to disclose.
New york – , but the opportunity for disease control and improvements in quality of life in the former are improving, according to an overview presented at the Skin of Color Update 2019.
Two studies published within the last 18 months that included large proportions of black patients have provided evidence that surgery is effective in those inadequately controlled on medical therapies, Theodore Rosen, MD, professor of dermatology at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, said at the meeting.
The best results were observed in a study that evaluated the impact of surgery and adjunctive biologic therapy, according to Dr. Rosen. Of the 68 patients, 59 (72%) were black (Int J Dermatol. 2018;57[1]:62-9). For those patients who received both surgery and biologic therapy, there was a nearly three times greater likelihood of achieving a 75% reduction in the active nodule count (AN75) after adjusting for covariates, compared with those who received only surgery (hazard ratio, 2.88; P = .047).
“It did not appear to matter which came first,” said Dr. Rosen, who is also chief of the dermatology service at Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Houston. He added, “this is a lot of work, and it is a lot of cost. It requires dedicated people, but it probably is the best thing we possibly do in difficult cases.”
In the other study cited by Dr. Rosen, a review of surgical procedures used to treat HS, the authors concluded that en bloc excision of HS was a better approach than less aggressive surgical approaches, such as drainage, because it lowered the risk of recurrences. This evaluation also included a substantial number of black patients, he said.
It is appropriate to consider black patients separately when discussing HS for a number of reasons. One is the evidence that the disease is more common in this population. Although Dr. Rosen cautioned that prevalence studies do not show this consistently, he believes the preponderance of evidence supports this assertion.
In addition, HS appears to be more severe in black patients. Many of the risk factors that predict a difficult course, such as obesity and diabetes, are more prevalent in the black population, Dr. Rosen said. He also cited a study that concluded HS imposes a larger overall negative impact on quality of life in nonwhite than in white patients (Skin Appendage Disord 2015 Sep;1[2]:65-73).
Despite the evidence that surgery plus biologics is an effective strategy for control of severe disease, there remains no standard approach – even for initial therapy, according to Dr. Rosen. Lifestyle modifications, such as weight loss and smoking cessation, are a starting point, but the order of the next best steps are unclear.
At many centers, biologics have been moved forward in the algorithm on the basis of two placebo-controlled trials that associated adalimumab with higher clinical response rates activity in HS (N Engl J Med. 2016 Aug 4;375[5]:422-34). But Dr. Rosen cautioned that this trial did not include many patients with skin of color, and failure rates are not insignificant.
Promising activity has been reported in HS with both anti–interleukin-17 therapies and apremilast, a phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) inhibitor, according to Dr. Rosen but this experience is limited overall and more so in black patients. He listed other drugs associated with benefit in cases studies, such as metformin, which deserve consideration when more conventional options fail, but he reiterated that there is no established ladder of therapies to consider in HS patients regardless of skin type.
Overall, treatment strategies are not different in nonwhite patients relative to white patients, but Dr. Rosen believes that the greater severity of HS in black individuals warrants attention. He noted, for example, that the risk of squamous cell carcinoma, which is elevated in HS patients overall, appears to be even higher in black patients with HS.
Although he did not advocate metformin or any of the other off-label treatments associated with efficacy in case studies, he acknowledged that “this may be where you have to go” when the devastating symptoms of HS remain uncontrolled.
Dr. Rosen reports no relevant financial relationships to disclose.
New york – , but the opportunity for disease control and improvements in quality of life in the former are improving, according to an overview presented at the Skin of Color Update 2019.
Two studies published within the last 18 months that included large proportions of black patients have provided evidence that surgery is effective in those inadequately controlled on medical therapies, Theodore Rosen, MD, professor of dermatology at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, said at the meeting.
The best results were observed in a study that evaluated the impact of surgery and adjunctive biologic therapy, according to Dr. Rosen. Of the 68 patients, 59 (72%) were black (Int J Dermatol. 2018;57[1]:62-9). For those patients who received both surgery and biologic therapy, there was a nearly three times greater likelihood of achieving a 75% reduction in the active nodule count (AN75) after adjusting for covariates, compared with those who received only surgery (hazard ratio, 2.88; P = .047).
“It did not appear to matter which came first,” said Dr. Rosen, who is also chief of the dermatology service at Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Houston. He added, “this is a lot of work, and it is a lot of cost. It requires dedicated people, but it probably is the best thing we possibly do in difficult cases.”
In the other study cited by Dr. Rosen, a review of surgical procedures used to treat HS, the authors concluded that en bloc excision of HS was a better approach than less aggressive surgical approaches, such as drainage, because it lowered the risk of recurrences. This evaluation also included a substantial number of black patients, he said.
It is appropriate to consider black patients separately when discussing HS for a number of reasons. One is the evidence that the disease is more common in this population. Although Dr. Rosen cautioned that prevalence studies do not show this consistently, he believes the preponderance of evidence supports this assertion.
In addition, HS appears to be more severe in black patients. Many of the risk factors that predict a difficult course, such as obesity and diabetes, are more prevalent in the black population, Dr. Rosen said. He also cited a study that concluded HS imposes a larger overall negative impact on quality of life in nonwhite than in white patients (Skin Appendage Disord 2015 Sep;1[2]:65-73).
Despite the evidence that surgery plus biologics is an effective strategy for control of severe disease, there remains no standard approach – even for initial therapy, according to Dr. Rosen. Lifestyle modifications, such as weight loss and smoking cessation, are a starting point, but the order of the next best steps are unclear.
At many centers, biologics have been moved forward in the algorithm on the basis of two placebo-controlled trials that associated adalimumab with higher clinical response rates activity in HS (N Engl J Med. 2016 Aug 4;375[5]:422-34). But Dr. Rosen cautioned that this trial did not include many patients with skin of color, and failure rates are not insignificant.
Promising activity has been reported in HS with both anti–interleukin-17 therapies and apremilast, a phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) inhibitor, according to Dr. Rosen but this experience is limited overall and more so in black patients. He listed other drugs associated with benefit in cases studies, such as metformin, which deserve consideration when more conventional options fail, but he reiterated that there is no established ladder of therapies to consider in HS patients regardless of skin type.
Overall, treatment strategies are not different in nonwhite patients relative to white patients, but Dr. Rosen believes that the greater severity of HS in black individuals warrants attention. He noted, for example, that the risk of squamous cell carcinoma, which is elevated in HS patients overall, appears to be even higher in black patients with HS.
Although he did not advocate metformin or any of the other off-label treatments associated with efficacy in case studies, he acknowledged that “this may be where you have to go” when the devastating symptoms of HS remain uncontrolled.
Dr. Rosen reports no relevant financial relationships to disclose.
REPORTING FROM SOC 2019