Is topical treatment effective for psoriasis in patients who failed topical treatment?

Objectives: To determine if resistance to topical treatments can be overcome under conditions promoting adherence. Materials and Methods: Twelve psoriasis patients treated with topical 0.25% desoximetasone spray were randomized to either twice daily phone call reminders or no phone call and were treated for 2 weeks. Pruritus Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI), Total Lesion Severity Score (TLSS), and, Investigator Global Assessment (IGA) assessed disease severity. Results: Most subjects improved in most scoring parameters. 100%, 91.7%, 83.3%, and 58.3% had improvements in itching, PASI, TLSS, and IGA, respectively. Conclusions: While our sample size was small and treatment duration short, the effect size of topical treatment was large under conditions designed to promote adherence.

Automated summary

The study found that under conditions promoting adherence, topical treatment can effectively improve symptoms in psoriasis patients. While the sample size was small and treatment duration short, there were significant improvements in itching, PASI, TLSS, and IGA scores.