Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD), the most common chronic inflammatory skin disease, is evolving as a systemic disease, and associated systemic inflammation is possibly linked to increases in cardiovascular disease. Methods: We assessed levels of the inflammatory marker CRP in 59 patients with moderate-to-severe AD compared to matched healthy controls, and to determine correlation with skin disease severity. Clinical severity was measured using SCORing of Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) and body surface area (BSA). Control subjects (n=118), matched by age, gender, smoking status and ethnicity, were obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHANES). Results: AD patients had significantly increased serum CRP levels compared to controls (0.7±1.0 vs. 0.4±0.7mg/dl; p=0.001), and 52.5% of them showed CRP levels >0.3mg/dl, predicting high cardiovascular risk. CRP levels were significantly correlated with both SCORAD (r=0.427, p=0.0008) and BSA (r=0.407, p=0.0015).  IgE levels in AD were highly elevated (median 2903U/ml, IQR [234,10655]), but only weakly correlated with SCORAD (r=0.282, p=0.0427) and BSA (r=0.382, p=0.0052), but not with CRP levels. AD patients also showed increased LDH levels, but without significant correlations with disease severity (SCORAD, BSA) or CRP. Conclusions: Our study strongly supports CRP as a marker for disease severity in moderate-to-severe AD patients, further demonstrating its chronic systemic nature.

Granuloma annulare (GA) is a benign inflammatory dermatosis characterized clinically by dermal papules and annular plaques. The pathogenesis of GA is not well understood, although it is thought to result from a delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction in which inflammatory cells elicit connective tissue degradation. This condition has been seen following the use of several drugs, including tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) inhibitors, which paradoxically have also been reported to treat GA. We report the case of a patient who developed GA in association with secukinumab, an interleukin-17A antagonist, and discuss its implications for our understanding of the pathogenesis of GA.

This large-scale study strengthens the evidence that these two inflammatory conditions are truly associated and establishes their joint effect on overall morbidity, mortality, and resource utilization.

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Pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) lacks consensus regarding treatment, and no prior studies assess treatment satisfaction in PG. The objective of this study was to determine patient-reported satisfaction in the treatment of PG, and associations with satisfaction. Methodology was a multicenter cross-sectional survey for patients who received systemic medication(s) to treat PG. Thirty-five patients completed the survey (mean age: 54.0 years, 65.7% female, response rate: 81.4%). Mean (± SD)

Atopic dermatitis (AD), the most common chronic inflammatory Background: skin disease, is evolving as a systemic disease, and associated systemic inflammation is possibly linked to increases in cardiovascular disease.We assessed levels of the inflammatory marker CRP in 59 patients Methods: with moderate-to-severe AD compared to matched healthy controls, and to determine correlation with skin disease severity. Clinical severity was measured using SCORing of Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) and body surface area (BSA). Control subjects (n=118), matched by age, gender, smoking status and ethnicity, were obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHANES).AD patients had significantly increased serum CRP levels compared Results: to controls (0.7±1.0 vs. 0.4±0.7mg/dl; p=0.001). CRP levels were significantly correlated with both SCORAD (r=0.427, p=0.0008) and BSA (r=0.407, p=0.0015). IgE levels in AD were highly elevated (median 2903U/ml, IQR [234,10655]), but only weakly correlated with SCORAD (r=0.282, p=0.0427) and BSA (r=0.382, p=0.0052), but not with CRP levels. AD patients also showed increased LDH levels, but without significant correlations with disease severity (SCORAD, BSA) or CRP.Our study strongly supports CRP as a marker for disease Conclusions: severity in moderate-to-severe AD patients, further demonstrating its chronic systemic nature. PMB has received personal fees from LEO Pharma and Sanofi. EGY is a board member for Sanofi Aventis, Regeneron, Competing interests: Stiefel/GlaxoSmithKline, MedImmune, Celgene, Anacor, AnaptysBio, Celsus, Dermira, Galderma, Glenmark, Novartis, Pfizer, Vitae, Leo Pharma, Abbvie and Asana Biosciences; has received consultancy fees from Regeneron, Sanofi, MedImmune, Celgene, Stiefel/GlaxoSmithKline, Celsus, BMS, Amgen, Drais, AbbVie, Anacor, AnaptysBio, Dermira, Galderma, Glenmark, LEO Pharma, Novartis, Pfizer, Vitae, Mitsubishi Tanabe, Eli Lilly, Abbvie, and Asana Biosciences; and has received research support from Janssen, Regeneron, Celgene, BMS, Novartis, Merck, LEO Pharma, Dermira, Glenmark, Innovaderm, and UCB. The rest of the authors declare that they have no relevant conflicts to disclose.