Prevalence of genital psoriasis in patients with psoriasis

Abstract

Background: Psoriatic lesions in the genital area (GenPs) can cause considerable physical and emotional distress. To increase physician awareness, we estimated the GenPs prevalence among patients with psoriasis.

Methods: An English language literature search was performed. Articles reporting GenPs prevalence met the search criteria and were included. Because GenPs is rarely reported in demographics of prospective clinical trials, GenPs prevalence and baseline demographics of patients with and without GenPs in two prospective randomized phase 3b trials (NCT02561806 and NCT02634801) involving patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis are reported.

Results: Overall, 600 references were screened. Eighteen articles met the search criteria. Patient populations were highly heterogeneous across articles. Broadly, the presence of GenPs was either physician-reported (physical examinations) or patient-reported (questionnaires). In the literature, GenPs prevalence at the time of reporting ranged from 7% to 42% and the prevalence of GenPs at any time during the course of psoriasis ranged from 33% to 63%. In the two prospective clinical trials, the prevalence of GenPs at the time of enrollment was 35-42%.

Conclusion: A substantial proportion of patients experience genital lesions at some time during the course of psoriasis. Increased awareness of GenPs prevalence may drive improved assessment and treatment.

Keywords: Genital psoriasis; clinical trials; literature search; prevalence.