Less than half of dermatologists screen or counsel psoriasis patients about alcohol or tobacco use, compared with all patients, but approximately 60% screen or counsel psoriasis patients about obesity, based on data from an online survey of 171 dermatologists and dermatology residents.
The findings were published in a letter to the editor in the November issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology (2014;71:1028-9).
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However, among patients with psoriasis, more than two-thirds of the respondents said they were more likely to both screen and counsel patients with moderate to severe psoriasis about alcohol, tobacco, and obesity, compared with psoriasis patients overall.
Previous research suggests that if psoriasis patients’ issues with alcohol, tobacco, and obesity are addressed, “patients may experience disease improvement, emphasizing the importance of screening and counseling,” wrote Brandon L. Adler and Aimee E. Krausz, medical students at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, N.Y., and their colleagues.
Overall, 87% of respondents believed themselves responsible for screening for the three risk factors, but 56% believed themselves responsible for counseling.
Although the results were limited by the focus on academic dermatologists, the findings suggest a need to improve dermatologists’ confidence in counseling patients, the researchers noted. “Systematic training and effective counseling instruments would empower practitioners to translate this knowledge into clinical practice.”
The study was supported by the Dermatology Foundation Career Development Awards Program.
The researchers had no financial conflicts to disclose.
