Patient perspectives on treating psoriasis with classic inpatient dithranol therapy: a retrospective patient survey.

Background:Evidence of the efficacy of dithranol and patient perspectives on the treatment is scant. Patients and Methods:Using a telephone interview survey, we collected retrospective data from 63 patients (41 men [65.1%] and 22 women [34.9%]) who had been treated with classic inpatient dithranol (CID). PsoRA (www.psoriasisregistry.at) was used to obtain clinical data and treatment responses, which were then correlated with the interview responses. Results:Fifty-two (82.5%) patients achieved a PASI75 and 51 (81%) a PASI90 response within a median of 12.5 (range: 3 to 25) days. Ten out of twelve (83%) patients showed a satisfactory response to CID (PASI75 or greater reduction) despite the fact that they had previously failed to adequately respond to methotrexate, oral retinoids, cyclosporine, or ustekinumab. Overall, patients recalled a median recurrence-free interval of four (95% CI: 3-9) months after responding to CID, which was positively correlated with the patients' recommendation of (p=0.018) and their overall high satisfaction with the treatment (p=0.012). Conclusions:Despite the known limitations of CID, this survey indicates that dithranol remains a highly efficacious and valuable treatment option as induction therapy in psoriasis. CID can be effective in patients who have failed to respond to systemic therapy, including traditional agents and biologics.