Hidradenitis suppurativa and psoriasis: the odd couple

Laura Macca; Federica Li Pomi; Ylenia Ingrasciotta; Pietro Morrone; Gianluca Trifirò; Claudio Guarneri

doi:10.3389/fmed.2023.1208817

Hidradenitis suppurativa and psoriasis: the odd couple

Front Med (Lausanne). 2023 Jul 7:10:1208817. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1208817. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Laura Macca¹, Federica Li Pomi¹, Ylenia Ingrasciotta², Pietro Morrone³, Gianluca Trifirò², Claudio Guarneri⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Section of Dermatology, University of Messina, Messina, Italy.
² Department of Diagnostics and Public Health, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
³ Unit of Dermatology, Mariano Santo Hospital, Cosenza, Italy.
⁴ Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, Section of Dermatology, University of Messina, Messina, Italy.

Abstract

Psoriasis and hidradenitis suppurativa are chronic inflammatory skin diseases that can develop together, negatively impacting on the patient's quality of life. We aimed to review the most up-to-date information regarding the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentation and possible therapeutical choices in patients with both psoriasis and hidradenitis suppurativa, thus linking these two autoimmune and autoinflammatory conditions. A narrative review of articles dating from 2017 to 2022 has been performed using the PubMed database. We analyzed the case reports and case series found in the literature regarding patients who suffered from both psoriasis and HS. Psoriasis arose before hidradenitis suppurativa in the majority of cases, while only a minority of them had hidradenitis suppurativa before psoriasis. Interestingly, some patients suffered from paradoxical hidradenitis suppurativa following biological therapy administered to treat the already present psoriasis. Lastly, new biological drugs have been marketed with great success for the outcome of psoriasis, but similar progress did not happen for hidradenitis. Novel therapeutic approaches and lines of research are needed for the treatment of these pathologies, even if concomitant, in order to improve patient's quality of life.

Keywords: IL-12/23/17; TNF-α; Th1; Th17; Th22; biologics; hidradenitis suppurativa; psoriasis.

Publication types

Review