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INTRODUCTION: A three-pronged approach to acne treatment combining an antibiotic, antimicrobial, and retinoid may be more efficacious than single/double treatments while potentially reducing antibiotic resistance. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of the first fixed-dose, triple-combination topical acne product, clindamycin 1.2%/adapalene 0.15%/benzoyl peroxide (BPO) 3.1% gel (CAB) using pooled phase 3 data. METHODS: In two identical phase 3 (N = 183; N = 180), double-blind, 12-week studies, participants aged ≥ 9 years with moderate-to-severe acne were randomized 2:1 to receive once-daily CAB or vehicle gel. Endpoints included ≥ 2-grade reduction from baseline in Evaluators Global Severity Score and clear/almost clear skin (treatment success) and least-squares mean percent change from baseline in acne lesion counts. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) and cutaneous safety/tolerability were evaluated. RESULTS: At week 12, 50.0% of participants achieved treatment success with CAB versus 22.6% with vehicle gel (P  70% reductions in inflammatory and noninflammatory lesions at week 12 (77.9% and 73.0%, respectively), which were significantly greater than vehicle (57.9% and 48.2%; P

INTRODUCTION: Plaque psoriasis is a chronic condition that may impact patients work productivity. Tildrakizumab, an interleukin-23 p19 inhibitor, is approved for treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in adults. However, the effect of tildrakizumab treatment on work productivity in patients with psoriasis is not well characterized. METHODS: In this multicenter, open-label, uncontrolled phase 4 study (NCT03718299), patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis received tildrakizumab 100 mg at week 0, week 4, and every 12 weeks thereafter through week 52. Patients completed the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire: Psoriasis (WPAI:PSO) at baseline and every 12 weeks from week 16 through week 64. The following four domains of the WPAI:PSO were examined: absenteeism (percentage of time missed from work due to psoriasis), presenteeism (percentage reduction of productivity while at work due to psoriasis), total activity impairment (percentage impairment in activities other than work due to psoriasis), and total work productivity impairment (total percentage of work impairment from both absenteeism and presenteeism due to psoriasis). Missing data were not imputed. RESULTS: Of the 55 patients enrolled, 31 patients completed all domains of the WPAI:PSO at week 64. From baseline to week 64, respectively, mean ± standard deviation (SD) scores improved for presenteeism (20.5 ± 21.7 to 2.6 ± 5.8; P

Rosacea, a chronic skin condition affecting millions of people in the USA, leads to significant social and professional stigmatization. Effective management strategies are crucial to alleviate symptoms and improve patients quality of life. Encapsulated benzoyl peroxide 5% (E-BPO 5%) is a newly FDA-approved topical treatment for rosacea that shows promise in enhancing therapeutic response and minimizing skin irritation. This review aims to assess the role of recently FDA approved E-BPO 5% in the current treatment landscape for rosacea management, as it is not yet included in clinical guidelines that predominantly rely on older approved therapies. The review focuses on randomized controlled trials conducted in English-speaking adults. It evaluates the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of various US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved agents used for rosacea treatment, including E-BPO cream, metronidazole gel, azelaic acid gel and foam, ivermectin cream, minocycline foam, oral doxycycline, brimonidine gel, and oxymetazoline HCl cream. Existing therapies have been effective in reducing papulopustular lesions and erythema associated with rosacea for many years. E-BPO 5% offers a promising addition to the treatment options due to its microencapsulation technology, which prolongs drug delivery time and aims to improve therapeutic response while minimizing skin irritation. Further research is necessary to determine the exact role of E-BPO 5% in the therapeutic landscape for rosacea. However, based on available evidence, E-BPO 5% shows potential as a valuable treatment option for managing inflammatory lesions of rosacea, and it may offer benefits to patients including: rapid onset of action, demonstrated efficacy by Week 2, excellent tolerability, and sustained long-term results for up to 52 weeks of treatment.

ObjectiveWe sought to evaluate the impact of the coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) pandemic on sun-seeking and sun-safe behaviors.MethodsWe conducted an online, cross-sectional, population-based survey.ResultsIn total, 1,001 respondents participated in the survey and reported being exposed to 12 or more hours of sunlight (i.e., direct and indirect ultraviolet light, and blue light) each day. Participants self-reported a net increase in all types of light exposure since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially to blue light (+38%). Notably, while the effects of direct sunlight were well known among survey respondents, they were less aware of the potential damaging impact of indirect sunlight and blue light.LimitationsAs the survey was only conducted among residents of the United States, results might not be generalizable to all geographical regions.ConclusionSocial outreach strategies are required to improve sun-safe behaviors. Future behavioral interventions should encourage the implementation of broad-spectrum sun protection.

AimsPersistent atrial fibrillation (AF) has been explained by multiple mechanisms which, while they conflict, all agree that more disorganized AF is more difficult to treat than organized AF. We hypothesized that persistent AF consists of interacting organized areas which may enlarge, shrink or coalesce, and that patients whose AF areas enlarge by ablation are more likely to respond to therapy.Methods and resultsWe mapped vectorial propagation in persistent AF using wavefront fields (WFF), constructed from raw unipolar electrograms at 64-pole basket catheters, during ablation until termination (Group 1, N = 20 patients) or cardioversion (Group 2, N = 20 patients). Wavefront field mapping of patients (age 61.1 ± 13.2 years, left atrium 47.1 ± 6.9 mm) at baseline showed 4.6 ± 1.0 organized areas, each separated by disorganization. Ablation of sites that led to termination controlled larger organized area than competing sites (44.1 ± 11.1% vs. 22.4 ± 7.0%, P

BACKGROUND: Localized drivers are proposed mechanisms for persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) from optical mapping of human atria and clinical studies of AF, yet are controversial because drivers fluctuate and ablating them may not terminate AF. We used wavefront field mapping to test the hypothesis that AF drivers, if concurrent, may interact to produce fluctuating areas of control to explain their appearance/disappearance and acute impact of ablation. METHODS: We recruited 54 patients from an international registry in whom persistent AF terminated by targeted ablation. Unipolar AF electrograms were analyzed from 64-pole baskets to reconstruct activation times, map propagation vectors each 20 ms, and create nonproprietary phase maps. RESULTS: Each patient (63.6±8.5 years, 29.6% women) showed 4.0±2.1 spatially anchored rotational or focal sites in AF in 3 patterns. First, a single (type I; n=7) or, second, paired chiral-antichiral (type II; n=5) rotational drivers controlled most of the atrial area. Ablation of 1 to 2 large drivers terminated all cases of types I or II AF. Third, interaction of 3 to 5 drivers (type III; n=42) with changing areas of control. Targeted ablation at driver centers terminated AF and required more ablation in types III versus I (P=0.02 in left atrium). CONCLUSIONS: Wavefront field mapping of persistent AF reveals a pathophysiologic network of a small number of spatially anchored rotational and focal sites, which interact, fluctuate, and control varying areas. Future work should define whether AF drivers that control larger atrial areas are attractive targets for ablation.