To the Editor:
Psoriasis treatments have been shown to vary by race, but racial differences in initial psoriasis treatment has not been adequately studied.1,2 Our objectives were to compare the initial prescription treatments received by different racial groups and examine trends over time.
After Weill Cornell Medicine IRB approval, annual numbers of patients with psoriasis were collected between January 1, 2005 and December 31, 2019. The initially prescribed treatment (phototherapy, biologics, apremilast, immunosuppressants) and demographics were recorded. Race was determined by patient self-identification. Odds ratios (OR) were calculated using pro-portions of patients treated and linear regression modeling was performed. T-tests were used to compare slopes between groups of patients.
Overall, 4976 White, 478 Asian, and 400 Black newly diagnosed patients received psoriasis treatment over the study period. For initial treatments, patients were prescribed topicals (5166, 88.2%), immunosuppressants (269, 4.6%), phototherapy (174, 3.0%), biologics (159, 2.7%), or apremilast (59, 1.0%).
