How psoriasis patients perceive, obtain, and use biologic agents: Survey from an academic medical center

Abstract

The availability of new biologic agents for the treatment of psoriasis provides hope for improved quality of life outcomes. However, the way patients come to use biologics, the potential barriers they encounter, and their attitudes towards using these medications are still not well studied. Here, we conducted a survey of 106 psoriasis patients at an academic medical center to discern patient attitudes towards biologics. We found that most patients learn of biologics through their physician and perform follow-up research using the Internet. Most patients did not find it difficult to make the decision to start a biologic. Difficulty in obtaining biologics was associated with age less than 55 (p = 0.01), lower income level (p = 0.007), and lack of insurance (p = 0.04). Patients were found to have high satisfaction and compliance rates on biologics. Of patients who missed a dose of their biologic, this was mainly due to logistical reasons such as not having the medication or forgetting to take it, rather than being depressed or overwhelmed. Patients with lower income levels had increased cut backs in personal expenses due to co-payments (p = 0.001). Among respondents, the mean annual out-of-pocket expense for a biologic was $557.12 per year, with a range of $0–7000.

Key words::

• psoriasis
• biologics
• education
• barriers
• cost
• compliance

Acknowledgements

We thank the patients who participated in this survey as well as the staff at the UCSF Psoriasis Center for making this study possible. WL is supported by a grant from the National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (K08AR057763).

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.