[Translated article] Approach to the Epidemiology, Disease Management, and Current Challenges in the Management of Generalized Pustular Psoriasis Through a Survey Conducted Among Spanish Dermatologists.

BACKGROUND: Generalized pustular psoriasis (GPP) is a rare and severe inflammatory skin disease characterised by recurrent or intermittent flares. Epidemiological and disease management data in Spain are limited. Our goal was to estimate the epidemiology of GPP, explore its management, and reach consensus on the current challenges faced in Spain. METHODS: An electronic survey was submitted to dermatologists from the Spanish Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Psoriasis Working Group. This group is experienced in the management of GPP. It included a Delphi consensus to establish the current challenges. RESULTS: A total of 33 dermatologists responded to the survey. A 5-year prevalence and incidence of 13.05 and 7.01 cases per million inhabitants, respectively, were estimated. According to respondents, the most common GPP symptoms are pustules, erythema, and desquamation, while 45% of patients present > 1 annual flares. A total of 45% of respondents indicated that flares often require a length of stay between 1 and 2 weeks. In the presence of a flare, 67% of respondents often or always prescribe a non-biological systemic treatment as the first-line therapy [cyclosporine (55%); oral retinoid (30%)], and 45% a biological treatment [anti-TNFα (52%); anti-IL-17 (39%)]. The dermatologists agreed that the main challenges are to define and establish specific therapeutic goals to treat the disease including the patients' perspective on the management of the disease. CONCLUSION: Our study describes the current situation on the management of GPP in Spain, increasing the present knowledge on the disease, and highlighting the current challenges faced at the moment.

Racial and ethnic underrepresentation in dermatology clinical trials.

BACKGROUND: Including participants of diverse racial and ethnic populations in clinical trials is important to reduce disparities and promote health care equity. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate racial and ethnic representation in dermatology clinical trials. METHODS: Participant data from dermatology trials completed in the United States from 2017 to 2021 from ClinicalTrials.gov were compared to census data to determine if minority groups were represented at rates that reflect population demographics. Participation was compared with prevalence rates for the most underrepresented racial group. RESULTS: Of 246 trials that met inclusion criteria, 87.4% (215) reported racial data. Compared to census data, Black/African American, American Indian/Alaskan Native, and 2 or more races were underrepresented. Hispanic or Latinos were an underrepresented ethnic group. LIMITATIONS: The search was limited to ClinicalTrials.gov registered studies that fell within search parameters. Race reporting methods were not specified. Detailed analysis was only performed for the most underrepresented racial group. CONCLUSION: Certain minority groups were underrepresented in dermatology trials. Black/African Americans were most underrepresented and underrepresented even when accounting for prevalence rates. Trial representation that accurately reflects population demographics and subgroup prevalence rates can help reduce health inequity, improve clinical understanding, and enhance treatment access for the growing diverse population.

Employment and Migration Patterns of Recent Micrographic Surgery and Dermatologic Oncology Fellowship Graduates.

BACKGROUND: There is currently an uneven distribution of the Mohs surgery workforce, with a dearth in nonurban areas. The relationship between training and employment locations of Mohs surgeons has not been studied. OBJECTIVE: To analyze the employment location of recent micrographic surgery and dermatologic oncology (MSDO) graduates in reference to residency and fellowship locations. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data collection of training and practice locations of 421 MSDO fellowship graduates from 2012 to 2017. RESULTS: Thirty-two percent (n = 136) and 53% (n = 225) of MSDO fellowship graduates' first employment locations were located within 10 and 100 miles of either their residency or fellowship locations. Ninety-six percent of graduates were employed in a metropolitan location. Female graduates worked closer to training sites than male graduates, with 62% (n = 124) versus 46% (n = 102) working within 100 miles of either training site. Analysis by fellowship census region showed that graduates clustered around training sites in all regions, with 45% to 60% of graduates working within 100 miles of either training site. CONCLUSION: The majority of graduates chose to work in a metropolitan area. Training location strongly predicts employment location. More than 45% of graduates in any region worked within 100 miles of their residency or fellowship site, and a sizeable portion worked within 10 miles.

Similarities and Differences Between Rural and Urban Telemedicine Utilization.

Telemedicine has traditionally been used in rural areas, but the recent development of mHealth solutions has led to a growth in urban telemedicine services. The aim of this study was to determine whether urban and rural patients in a large academic medical center use telemedicine to access different healthcare specialties at different rates. This retrospective cohort study examined all telemedicine visits dated 2008-2017 at a large academic medical center. Visits were classified by clinical specialty. Teledermatology, child telepsychiatry, and adult telepsychiatry made up 97 percent of telemedicine visits. Rural patients were more likely to have multiple telehealth visits. A significant difference was observed between rural and urban use of telemedicine, both in terms of specialties and demographics. This suggests that health systems should consider adjusting resources and training to meet the different needs of these two populations. In particular, telemedicine may offer help for the nationwide maldistribution of adolescent psychiatry providers.

Gender disparities in academic dermatology in Japan: Results from the first national survey.

BACKGROUND: A wide gender gap exists in many fields in Japan, including the academic society of dermatology. Women are substantially underrepresented in the highest academic ranks. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to clarify the possible factors contributing to the current gender gap in the field of academic dermatology and to recommend necessary measures to decrease the gender gap. METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional study of faculty members' academic productivity at the dermatology departments of all the educational institutions in Japan in 2019. RESULTS: Women had significantly lower academic productivity than men. A significant gender difference in academic productivity was found in lecturers and assistant professors but not in associate professor and professor positions. This gender difference was still significant after normalizing the productivity for career length. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest the need to encourage women lecturers and assistant professors to improve their academic achievement to decrease the gender gap in academic dermatology.

Demographic and medical school characteristics associated with urban versus rural dermatology practice: A national cross-sectional study.

There are significant disparities in access to dermatologists in rural areas relative to urban areas. We examined the associations between demographic and medical school characteristics and entry into dermatology practice in urban versus rural counties. All dermatologists who graduated from U.S. allopathic or osteopathic medical schools in the 2020 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Physician Compare Database were assessed. Dermatology practice locations were coded as metropolitan or non-metropolitan according to the Rural-Urban Continuum Codes. Of 10,076 dermatologists, 543 (5.4%) practiced in non-metropolitan counties. Male gender (odds ratio [OR] 1.48, 95% CI 1.23-1.77), public medical school attendance (OR 1.94, 95% CI 1.61-2.34), DO degree (OR 1.84, 95% CI 1.32-2.51), medical school location in a non-metropolitan county (OR 5.41, 95% CI 3.66-7.84), and medical school rural track program (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.07-2.26) were associated with higher odds of non-metropolitan dermatology practice. Our findings highlight that male gender, graduation from a non-metropolitan or public medical school, DO degree, and rural tracks are associated with higher likelihood of non-metropolitan dermatology practice. These results can inform efforts within the field of dermatology to strengthen the rural dermatologist workforce and suggest that rural educational experiences during medical school may increase recruitment of rural dermatologists.

Insurance Acceptance, Appointment Wait Time, and Dermatologist Access Across Practice Types in the US.

Importance: In the 15 years since dermatology access was last investigated on a national scale, the practice landscape has changed with the rise of private equity (PE) investment and increased use of nonphysician clinicians (NPCs). Objective: To determine appointment success and wait times for patients with various insurance types at clinics with and without PE ownership. Design, Setting, and Participants: In this study, PE-owned US clinics were randomly selected and matched with 2 geographically proximate clinics without PE ownership. Researchers called each clinic 3 times over a 5-day period to assess appointment/clinician availability for a fictitious patient with a new and changing mole. The 3 calls differed by insurance type specified, which were Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) preferred provider organization, Medicare, or Medicaid. Main Outcomes and Measures: Appointment success and wait times among insurance types and between PE-owned clinics and control clinics. Secondary outcomes were the provision of accurate referrals to other clinics when appointments were denied and clinician and next-day appointment availability. Results: A total of 1833 calls were made to 204 PE-owned and 407 control clinics without PE ownership across 28 states. Overall appointment success rates for BCBS, Medicare, and Medicaid were 96%, 94%, and 17%, respectively. Acceptance of BCBS (98.5%; 95% CI, 96%-99%; P = .03) and Medicare (97.5%; 95% CI, 94%-99%; P = .02) were slightly higher at PE-owned clinics (compared with 94.6% [95% CI, 92%-96%] and 92.8% [95% CI, 90%-95%], respectively, at control clinics). Wait times (median days, interquartile range [IQR]) were similar for patients with BCBS (7 days; IQR, 2-22 days) and Medicare (7 days; IQR, 2-25 days; P > .99), whereas Medicaid patients waited significantly longer (13 days; IQR, 4-33 days; P = .002). Clinic ownership did not significantly affect wait times. Private equity-owned clinics were more likely than controls to offer a new patient appointment with an NPC (80% vs 63%; P = .001) and to not have an opening with a dermatologist (16% vs 6%; P < .001). Next-day appointment availability was greater at PE-owned clinics than controls (30% vs 21%; P = .001). Conclusions and Relevance: Patients with Medicaid had significantly lower success in obtaining appointments and significantly longer wait times regardless of clinic ownership. Although the use of dermatologists and NPCs was similar regardless of clinic ownership, PE-owned clinics were more likely than controls to offer new patient appointments with NPCs.

What is the demand for out-of-hours dermatology? A UK-based region-wide survey of dermatology demand and provision during the evenings and at weekends.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the demand for out-of-hours (OOH) dermatology in the UK, and this can make commissioning of acute services difficult. The East Midlands region has a population of 4.5 million people, with variable access to OOH dermatology services. AIM: We sought to investigate the provision of, and demand for, OOH dermatology services across the region with a view to informing commissioning decisions for the future. METHODS: We contacted all dermatology departments in the East Midlands region to establish what level of service was commissioned at evenings and weekends. At the sites providing any form of OOH service, we recorded all requests for advice received after 17.00 h on weekdays, or at any time during weekends and bank holidays over a 3-month period from October to December 2019. RESULTS: The OOH services provided ranged from 24 h/day cover 7 days/week at one site, to no formal provision across much of the rest of the region. In total, 125 calls were received during the study period, averaging 1 call per day on weekday evenings, and 2 calls per day at weekends and on bank holidays. Of these 125 calls, 11 patients (9%) were prioritized and seen by the on-call dermatologist on the day of referral, and 9 of these had potentially life-threatening skin conditions. A further 39 (31%) were deemed to need review within 24 h and 22 (18%) within 48 h. The remaining 42% were given appointments within 7 days or dealt with by telephone advice. CONCLUSION: The demand for OOH dermatology across the East Midlands is low, but access to timely dermatology advice is essential in some situations. Commissioning of a regional dermatology OOH service incorporating digital technology may help to improve the equity of access for all patients across the region.

Innovation interest within dermatology: a needs assessment for novel thought processes.

Medical innovation is crucial to advancing our field, and physicians have the potential to play a leading role due to their daily patient care experiences. The objective of this study was to evaluate the interest in, and barriers to participating in innovation. Two surveys were conducted; the first cross-sectional survey was conducted among attendees of the Advancing Innovation in Dermatology Forum in Feburary 2019. The second survey was conducted among trainees (resident/fellows) and faculty dermatologists at Brown, Emory, Iowa, Stanford, and Vanderbilt Universities between June and November 2019. Demographic data were collected, as well as factors involved with identifying problems, developing solutions, training in innovation, and perceived barriers to innovation. In the first survey, the greatest perceived benefits include bringing joy to one's work and increasing professional fulfillment with work. Innovation was also perceived to decrease burnout. In the second survey of academic centers, faculty more commonly expressed interest in identifying problems (p = 0.04), and was also more confident in their ability to generate solutions to these problems as compared to trainees (p < 0.01). Major barriers to participating in innovation processes included lack of time and lack of training or education in innovation. Both trainees and faculty groups noted a lack of knowledge in creating prototypes, understanding regulatory approval for medical products, and inexperience with pitching to investors or obtaining funding. These cross-sectional needs assessment surveys found a strong interest in innovation coupled with a lack of education in innovation processes. These findings suggest an urgent need and opportunity for providing formal training to empower dermatologists with the tools to lead innovation within our field.

Changes in Use of Radiotherapy Among Dermatologists From 2013 to 2017.

Importance: Concerns have been raised about the use of radiotherapy (RT) by dermatologists. Little is known about temporal trends in payment for RT among dermatologists. Objective: To characterize changes in RT use and payment among dermatologists treating patients enrolled in Medicare. Design, Setting, and Participants: A cross-sectional, population-based retrospective analysis of dermatologists submitting Medicare claims was conducted. Dermatologists identified in the 2013-2017 Medicare Physician and Other Supplier Public Use File, which includes information on fee-for-service payments and service use among physicians caring for Medicare beneficiaries, were included in the analysis. The study was conducted from March 18 to October 22, 2020. Main Outcomes and Measures: Numbers and types of RT, current terminology codes billed by dermatologists, number of dermatologists providing RT services, total payments and median payments per dermatologist for RT services, total services and median services per dermatologist, and number of dermatologists billing for both RT and Mohs micrographic surgery services. Results: From 2013 to 2017, dermatologists billed RT codes, which included RT planning, preparation, delivery, and management services with varying levels of complexity. The number of dermatologists using RT increased from 115 to 198 between 2013 to 2017. Total payments and total services for RT have fluctuated over time. Median payments per dermatologist and median services provided per dermatologist for RT reached their highest level in 2017 ($80 810 and 629 services). In 2013, RT delivery was the highest reimbursed RT service type (total paid, $9 121 505). By 2017, clinical treatment planning and simulation was the highest reimbursed service type (total paid, $20 288 796). Conclusions and Relevance: The findings of this cross-sectional study indicate that dermatologist use of RT continues to increase. A wide variety of RT services are billed by dermatologists. Further research is needed to ensure expanded use is safe, efficacious, and cost-effective.