(Press-News.org) CHICAGO – A population-based study from the United Kingdom suggests that the common skin condition psoriasis may be a risk factor for the development of Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), according to a report published Online First by Archives of Dermatology, a JAMA Network publication.
Psoriasis, a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by scaling of the skin, affects 2 percent to 4 percent of the adult population, according to the study background.
Rahat S. Azfar, M.D., of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and colleagues used data from The Health Improvement Network (THIN), an electronic medical records database in the United Kingdom, to conduct a population-based study of adults ages 18 to 90 years with psoriasis vs. patients without psoriasis. They matched 108,132 patients with psoriasis with 430,716 patients without psoriasis.
"The adjusted attributable risk of developing T2DM among 1,000 patients with psoriasis per year is 0.9 extra cases overall, 0.7 cases in those with mild psoriasis, and 3.0 cases in those with severe psoriasis," the authors report in the study findings.
A secondary aim of the study was to determine whether patients with diabetes and psoriasis were more likely to receive prescription diabetic therapy compared with patients with DM but no psoriasis.
"We observed no difference in use of oral hypoglycemic agents or insulin among patients with mild psoriasis; however, patients with severe psoriasis were more likely to be prescribed oral hypoglycemic agents and had a trend toward being more likely to be prescribed insulin," the authors note.
"The data from this study suggest that psoriasis is a risk factor for the development of T2DM and that this relationship is dose dependent, with severe psoriasis conferring a higher risk than mild psoriasis," the authors comment. "Mechanistically, this relationship may be driven by chronic inflammation because both psoriasis and T2DM are associated with elevated levels of TH1-driven inflammatory markers, and because several studies have pointed to endogenous insulin resistance in patients with psoriasis."
###(Arch Dermatol. Published online June 18, 2012. doi:10.1001/archdermatol.2012.1401. Available pre-embargo to the media at http://media.jamanetwork.com.)
Editor's Note: One author disclosed serving on the data safety monitoring boards for several companies. Another has received grants and is a consultant for several companies. This work was supported by grants from the National Institute for Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and a T32 University of Pennsylvania dermatology departmental training grant. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, financial disclosures, funding and support, etc.
To contact Rahat S. Azfar, M.D., call Kim Menard 215-662-6183 or email kim.menard@uphs.upenn.edu.
Study suggests that psoriasis may be associated with development of type 2 diabetes
2012-06-19
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Refrigerated Food Express, Inc. Donates a Refrigerated Trailer for the Pan Mass Challenge for Food Storage
2012-06-19
Continuing an annual tradition, trucking transport company Refrigerated Food Express, Inc. will once again donate the use of one of their 53-foot long refrigerated trailer for the 2012 Pan Mass Challenge. Refrigerated trailers are traditionally used for food transport and storage, and will be utilized for that purpose once again this year. With the trailer provided by Refrigerated Food Express, cyclists from across Massachusetts will have energy and refreshment as they engage in the important fight against cancer.
The Pan Mass Challenge is a large-scale fundraiser presented ...
Study suggests link between smoking, increased risk of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma
2012-06-19
CHICAGO – Smoking appears to be associated with an increased risk of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma skin cancer, according to a report of a meta-analysis and review of available medical literature published Online First by Archives of Dermatology, a JAMA Network publication.
About 97 percent of skin cancers are epithelial (cells that cover the skin) in origin and are either basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) or squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), which are collectively known as nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC). The incidence of NMSC is increasing worldwide with an estimated 2 ...
Study examines chronic inflammation in oral cavity and HPV status of head and neck cancers
2012-06-19
CHICAGO – Among patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinomas, a history of chronic inflammation in the mouth (periodontitis, i.e. gum disease) may be associated with an increased risk of tumors positive for human papillomavirus (HPV), according to a report published Online First by Archives of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, a JAMA Network publication.
The National Cancer Institute has reported a steady increase in the prevalence of oropharyngeal cancers in the United States since 1973, despite a significant decline in tobacco use since 1965, according to ...
On the origin of music by means of natural selection
2012-06-19
Do away with the DJ and scrap the composer. A computer program powered by Darwinian natural selection and the musical tastes of 7,000 website users may be on the way to creating a perfect pop tune, according to new research published today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Scientists from Imperial College London have devised a way of producing music from noises without a composer. They programmed a computer to produce loops of random sounds and analyse the opinions of musical consumers, who decided which ones they liked. The result ...
Nutrilys Del Mar Announces Anti-Aging Skincare Supplement Summertime Sale
2012-06-19
Nutrilys Del Mar's new generation of anti-aging skincare supplement program for summertime, Nutricosmet, is making a splash this summer with an incredible sale.
From June 18 to July 2, this revolutionary natural and organic marine-based supplement system promotes a sun-kissed luminous beauty through the summer months and beyond will be offered at 50 percent off.
For a short time only, its $147 price tag will drop to $73.50. It's a perfect time to stock up.
"Our mission behind this summer sale was to make this sensational program available to everyone so ...
Minimally invasive approach to weight-loss surgery reduces complications, Stanford study shows
2012-06-19
STANFORD, Calif. — A study by researchers at Stanford University Medical Center has found that a popular weight-loss operation is safer and reduces hospital bills when done with minimally invasive techniques rather than open surgery, which requires a large abdominal incision.
The authors say that, to their knowledge, this is the first time the open and minimally invasive approaches have been compared at a national level. "There have been single-center randomized trials that support the greater safety and efficacy of the minimally invasive approach, but what our study ...
University of Maryland researchers detail 2010 Haitian cholera
2012-06-19
A new study by an international team of scientists led by researchers from the Institute for Genome Sciences (IGS) at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, the Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology at the University of Maryland, College Park, and CosmosIDTM Inc., College Park, have found two distinct strains of cholera bacteria may have contributed to the 2010 Haitian cholera outbreak. The team published its results June 18, 2012 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
The researchers say that the findings of their study, ...
Fish shed light on human melanoma
2012-06-19
BETHESDA, MD — June 15, 2012 — A transparent member of the minnow family is providing researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City with insight into human melanoma – a form of skin cancer – that may lead to new or repurposed drug treatments, for skin and other cancers.
The experiments will be reported at the "Model Organisms to Human Biology: Cancer Genetics" Meeting, June 17-20, 2012, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C., which is sponsored by the Genetics Society of America. The meeting will bring together investigators who study cancer-relevant ...
Living alone puts people with heart problems at risk for death
2012-06-19
BOSTON, MA—According to the United States Census Bureau, approximately one in seven American adults live alone. Social isolation and lack of social support have been linked to poor health outcomes. Now a new study at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) shows that living alone may be a risk factor for death, especially death due to cardiovascular problems, such as heart attack and stroke.
The study is the first to prospectively compare the cardiovascular risk of living alone in an international outpatient population. It will be published online in Archives of Internal ...
Alzheimer’s patients experience adverse outcomes, delirium
2012-06-19
BOSTON -- The state of acute confusion and disorientation known as delirium can stem from a serious illness, surgery or infection, and often develops while patients are in the hospital. Now a new study confirms that for patients with Alzheimer's disease, hospitalization and delirium pose a particular risk and can lead to adverse outcomes, including hastened cognitive decline, institutionalization and death.
Led by researchers at Harvard Medical School affiliates Hebrew SeniorLife and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), the study appears in the June 19 on-line ...