Patient Burden and Impact of Moderate-to-Severe Atopic Dermatitis in the Spanish Healthcare System: The APOLO Cross-Sectional Study


Por: Dobao, PD, Barredo, LC, Salvador, JFS, Serra-Baldrich, E, Pinto, PH, Cano, NH, De Frutos, FJO, Gullón, GR, Belloso, RML, Ortega, IA, Quesada, AG, Gutiérrez, MG, Calzada, YG, Torredemer, DA, Felius, NL, Martin, IH, Laserna, FJR

Publicada: 1 jul 2025
Resumen:
Introduction: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory condition associated with a signif-icant physical, psychological, and economic burden. This study aimed to determine the multidimen-sional impact of AD on patients and the Spanish healthcare system. Methods: The present multicenter descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at 12 Spanish sites to detect clinical practice assessments and validated patient-reported measures. Results: A total of 62 patients were included (54.8% males; mean age: 33.1 years). According to the validated Investigator Global Assessment scale for AD, 61.3% and 38.7% of patients had moderate and severe AD, respectively. AD involved a mean of 43.3% body surface area, with patients reporting a median of 4.0 flares in the past year. The mean Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM) question-naire score was 19.8, indicating severe eczema. In addition, 57.1% of patients reported daily pain from scratching or skin inflammation. The mean Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) was 14.3, show-ing a strong AD impact on patients' quality of life, positively correlated with severity, pruritus, and pain. AD also affected work productivity and sleep, with over 50% of patients reporting impairments in daily activities. Treatment patterns showed predominant use of topical corticosteroids (81.5%). Al-though no patient required hospitalization in the previous year, 25% resorted to alternative therapies/ unlicensed products. Conclusions: AD profoundly impacts patients' quality of life and entails high economic costs. This study emphasizes the need for more effective treatment strategies and an improved understanding of the AD burden to utilize public healthcare resources more efficiently.

Filiaciones:
Dobao, PD:
 Hosp Univ Infanta Leonor, Madrid, Spain

Barredo, LC:
 Hosp del Mar, Barcelona, Spain

Salvador, JFS:
 Hosp Gen Univ Dr Balmis, Alicante, Spain

Serra-Baldrich, E:
 Hosp Santa Creu & Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain

Pinto, PH:
 La Paz Univ Hosp, Dermatol Dept, Madrid, Spain

 Autonomous Univ Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Cano, NH:
 La Paz Univ Hosp, Dermatol Dept, Madrid, Spain

 Autonomous Univ Madrid, Madrid, Spain

De Frutos, FJO:
 Hosp Univ 12 Octubre, Madrid, Spain

Gullón, GR:
 Hosp Univ Puerta Hierro, Madrid, Spain

Belloso, RML:
 Hosp Univ Basurto Montevideo Etorb, Bilbao, Bizkaia, Spain

Ortega, IA:
 Hosp Univ Basurto Montevideo Etorb, Bilbao, Bizkaia, Spain

Quesada, AG:
 Hosp Univ Gran Canaria Dr Negrin, Las Palmas Gran Canaria, Spain

Gutiérrez, MG:
 Hosp Univ Reina, Cordoba, Spain

Calzada, YG:
 Hosp Univ Miguel Servet, Zaragoza, Spain

Torredemer, DA:
 Pfizer SLU, Avda Europa 20,B, Alcobendas 28108, Madrid, Spain

Felius, NL:
 Pfizer SLU, Avda Europa 20,B, Alcobendas 28108, Madrid, Spain

Martin, IH:
 Pfizer SLU, Avda Europa 20,B, Alcobendas 28108, Madrid, Spain

Laserna, FJR:
 Pfizer SLU, Avda Europa 20,B, Alcobendas 28108, Madrid, Spain
ISSN: 21609381





Dermatology Practical & Conceptual
Editorial
Mattioli 1885, VIA DELLA LODESANA 649-SX, FIDENZA, 43046 PR, ITALY, Italia
Tipo de documento: Article
Volumen: 15 Número: 3
Páginas:
WOS Id: 001606072400018
ID de PubMed: 40790435
imagen Green Submitted, gold

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