Real-World Clinical, Psychosocial, and Economic Burden of Atopic Dermatitis: Results From the ESSENTIAL AD Multicountry Study.

INTRODUCTION: Limited real-world evidence exists about the burden of atopic dermatitis (AD) in patients receiving systemic or non-systemic therapies in clinical practices. ESSENTIAL AD was an observational study that aimed to fill this information gap. METHODS: ESSENTIAL AD enrolled (September 2021-June 2022) adult patients with physician-confirmed AD that was routinely managed with systemic and non-systemic treatment in a real-world setting from 15 countries in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Primary outcome variables were Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI), SCORing Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD), and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) assessed during one office visit. RESULTS: A total of 799 enrolled patients fulfilled selection criteria and were included in the study. Patients mean (standard deviation [SD]) age was 36.3 (14.4) years, 457 (57.2%) were female, and the majority of patients were white (647 [81.0%]). Mean (SD) time since AD diagnosis was 17.6 (15.2) years (median 16.5; interquartile range [IQR] 3.3-26.8). The mean (SD) EASI, SCORAD, and DLQI total scores were 11.3 (11.3 [median 8.1; IQR 3.6-15.8]), 37.8 (17.9 [median 35.5; IQR 24.2-49.0]), and 10.6 (7.2 [median 10.0; IQR 5.0-15.0]), respectively. Patients receiving systemic treatment had significantly higher disease burden (mean [SD] EASI 13.3 [13.0]; median [IQR] 9.6 [3.9-17.9]) versus non-systemic treatment (mean [SD] 9.3 [8.7]; median [IQR] 6.8 [3.0-13.2]; P < 0.0001). Results were similar for SCORAD (39.9 [19.6] vs 35.6 [15.7]; median [IQR] 38.6 [24.7-53.1] vs 32.6 [23.9-44.6]; P = 0.0017), and DLQI total scores (11.4 [7.4] vs 9.9 [6.9]; median [IQR] 11.0 [5.0-16.0] vs 9.0 [5.0-14.0]; P = 0.0033, respectively). CONCLUSION: Patients with AD continue to have substantial disease burden despite treatment with systemic therapy, suggesting that a need for effective disease management remains, including effective therapies that improve psychological outcomes and reduce economic burden of AD, in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Patients with atopic dermatitis often suffer from debilitating symptoms that impact their everyday lives. Although several treatment options are available, many patients continue to experience symptoms of disease. The ESSENTIAL AD study assessed burden of atopic dermatitis in patients receiving systemic and/or non-systemic therapies in real-life clinical practices across 15 countries in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The results of the study demonstrated that adult patients with atopic dermatitis continue to have substantial disease burden regardless of treatment with systemic therapy or non-systemic therapy. The findings suggest that optimal management of atopic dermatitis needs to be reassessed in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, especially as new, more effective treatment options become available to patients.

Vitamin B12 deficiency and neuropsychiatric symptoms in Lebanon: A cross-sectional study of vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores.

BACKGROUND: Vitamin B12 deficiency is responsible for a variety of complications, particularly neurological/neuropsychiatric complications, including depression, irritability, paresthesia and insomnia. Since vitamin B12 is found in animal-derived products, vegans/vegetarians are at a greater risk for developing vitamin B12 deficiency. AIMS: This study aims to investigate the occurrence of vitamin B12 deficiency among a sample of adult Lebanese population, with a particular emphasis on assessing the severity of its neurological/neuropsychiatric signs and symptoms, especially among vegans/vegetarians. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of 483 Lebanese adults. Data was collected through a standardized questionnaire that included socio-demographic characteristics, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized anxiety disorders-7 (GAD-7), and the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) scales. RESULTS: Among the participants, 11.4% were in the vegan/vegetarian group, and about 43.1% had vitamin B12 deficiency. After analyzing the PHQ-9, GAD-7 and ISI total scores, higher scores were reported in participants with vitamin B12 deficiency, compared to individuals with normal vitamin B12 serum levels (p < 0.001). Regarding the diet type, vegans/vegetarians were more susceptible to developing depression compared to omnivores (mean scores of 11.92 vs 8.02 on the PHQ-9 scale, respectively, with p < 0.001). Of the patients with vitamin B12 deficiency, 81.1% reported having paresthesia compared to 43.7% of individuals with no vitamin B12 deficiency (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Vitamin B12 deficiency in Lebanon is notably high and is linked to an increased risk of developing depression, generalized anxiety disorder, insomnia, and paresthesia. Vegans/vegetarians exhibit a higher susceptibility to developing depression compared to omnivores, whereas the risk of developing insomnia, generalized anxiety disorder and paresthesia was statistically insignificant when comparing vegans/vegetarians to omnivores.

Diagnostic performance of deep learning to exclude coronary stenosis on CT angiography in TAVI patients.

We evaluated the diagnostic performance of a deep-learning model (DLM) (CorEx®, Spimed-AI, Paris, France) designed to automatically detect > 50% coronary stenosis on coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) images. We studied inter-observer variability as an additional aim. CCTA images obtained before transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) were assessed by two radiologists and the DLM, and the results were compared to those of invasive coronary angiography (ICA) used as the reference standard. 165 consecutive patients underwent both CCTA and ICA as part of their TAVI work-up. We excluded the 42 (25.5%) patients with a history of stenting or bypass grafting and the 23 (13.9%) patients with low-quality images. We retrospectively subjected the CCTA images from the remaining 100 patients to evaluation by the DLM and compared the DLM and ICA results. All 25 patients with > 50% stenosis by ICA also had > 50% stenosis by DLM evaluation of CCTA: thus, the DLM had 100% sensitivity and 100% negative predictive value. False-positive DLM results were common, yielding a positive predictive value of only 39% (95% CI, 27-51%). Two radiologists with 3 and 25 years' experience, respectively, performed similarly to the DLM in evaluating the CCTA images; thus, accuracy did not differ significantly between each reader and the DLM (p = 0.625 and p = 0.375, respectively). The DLM had 100% negative predictive value for > 50% stenosis and performed similarly to experienced radiologists. This tool may hold promise for identifying the up to one-third of patients who do not require ICA before TAVI.

Correlation between physician- and patient-directed disease assessments in ulcerative colitis patients from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait: Data from ICONIC.

Background: The aim of the observational, prospective study was to validate a novel, nonverbal assessment tool for perceived disease burden-Pictorial Representation of Illness and Self-Measure (PRISM)-in ulcerative colitis (UC) against established patient health questionnaires. The cumulative burden of patients recently diagnosed (<3 years) with UC was also evaluated. Methods: "ICONIC" - Understanding the impact of ulcerative colitis and its associated disease burden on patients - was a noninterventional, multicountry, multicenter study performed in a 2-year follow-up format in adult patients with recently diagnosed UC in 33 countries, regardless of disease severity or treatment. Data collection consisted of five visits, scheduled at approximately 6-month intervals. For the current analysis, patient data from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait were evaluated. The collected data comprised demographics, disease-related data, UC treatment, and healthcare resources, as well as physician- and patient-assessed quality-of-life and disease burden questionnaires. Correlations between selected questionnaire scores were performed using Spearman's rho. Results: Disease severity at baseline and throughout the study was slightly less favorable in this country analysis compared with the global study cohort. Disease burden was assessed by PRISM and improved within 24 months. Conclusions: The detected moderate correlation between PRISM and other assessment methods supports the validity of PRISM. Differences in perceptions of UC-related burden between physician and patient may reflect to some degree insufficient patient-physician communication.

Computed Tomography Scan Evidence for Left Atrial Appendage Short-Term Remodeling Following Percutaneous Occlusion: Impact of Device Oversizing.

Background The interrelationships between left atrial appendage (LAA) dimensions and device following implantation are unknown. We aimed to analyze the impact of Watchman device implantation on LAA dimensions following its percutaneous closure and potential predictors of remodeling. Methods and Results All consecutive LAA closure procedures performed at 2 centers between November 2017 and December 2020 were included in the WATCH-DUAL (Watchman 2.5 Versus Watchman FLX in a Dual-Center Left Atrial Appendage Closure Cohort) registry. This study included patients who had pre- and postintervention computed tomography scan analysis. The LAA and device dimensions were measured in a centralized core lab by 3-dimensional computed tomography scan reconstruction methods, focusing on the device landing zone. This analysis included 104 patients (age, 76.0 [range, 72.0-83.0] years; 72% men; 53% Watchman FLX; 47% Watchman 2.5). The baseline characteristics were comparable between Watchman 2.5 and Watchman FLX groups, except for the higher use of oversizing in the latter group. The median delay for computed tomography control was 49 (range, 43-64) days. The landing zone area (median, 446 [range, 363-523] versus 290 [222-366] mm2; P<0.001) and minimal diameter (median, 23.0 [range, 20.7-24.8] versus 16.7 [14.7-19.4] mm; P<0.001) significantly increased after implantation. The absolute (median, 157 [range, 98-220] versus 85 [18-148] mm2, P<0.001) and relative (median, 50% [range, 32%-79%] versus 26% [4%-50%]; P<0.001) increases in landing zone area were more pronounced in patients with oversized device. Baseline LAA dimensions were smaller, landing zone eccentricity larger, and oversized device more frequent in patients with significant overexpansion compared with the others. Conclusions LAA dimensions increased at the site of the Watchman prosthesis after implantation, suggesting a local positive remodeling after the procedure. This phenomenon was more pronounced in the case of oversized devices.

Percutaneous Coiling for Late-Acquired Peri-Device Leak Following Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion.

A 77-year-old patient with previous left atrial appendage (LAA) closure suffered from transient ischemic attack 6 years after the initial procedure. Computed tomography (CT) revealed appendage patency related to a late-acquired semicircular peri-device leak. The leak was treated by percutaneous LAA coiling. Subsequent clinical evolution was uneventful. (Level of Difficulty: Advanced.).