{"id":170207,"date":"2021-03-11T08:57:39","date_gmt":"2021-03-11T13:57:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=170207"},"modified":"2023-06-27T12:03:25","modified_gmt":"2023-06-27T16:03:25","slug":"psoriasis-center-brings-together-patients-providers-and-researchers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2021\/03\/psoriasis-center-brings-together-patients-providers-and-researchers\/","title":{"rendered":"Psoriasis Center Brings Together Patients, Providers, and Researchers"},"content":{"rendered":"

As innovations in the treatment of psoriasis continue to evolve, UConn Health now has a dedicated psoriasis center within its dermatology practice.<\/p>\n

Psoriasis is a relatively common condition in which an abnormality in the immune system leads to scaly, itchy, and sometimes painful skin plaques.<\/p>\n

\u201cLiving with psoriasis, I think you\u2019re always looking for someone who can help you and try to make it better,\u201d says Elizabeth, who\u2019s in her late 50s and was first diagnosed with psoriasis at age 17. \u201cI think you are always trying to chase a cure for it, but rarely is the emotional impact it has on you addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n

While UConn Health dermatologists always have treated psoriasis, the new center, which opened this week in the former emergency department space in the Connecticut Tower, represents a coordinated and holistic approach to providing care for those with psoriasis, who make up an estimated 25-to-30% of UConn Health\u2019s dermatology patients.<\/p>\n

\"Dr.
Dr. Marti Rothe is director of phototherapy in UConn Health’s Department of Dermatology. (Tina Encarnacion\/UConn Health photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe psoriasis center consists of a core group of physicians and nurses who know the psoriasis patients well and have extensive experience managing them,\u201d says Dr. Marti Rothe<\/a>, one of the UConn Health dermatologists who specialize in psoriasis care. \u201cHaving this therapeutic relationship centered in a single area will enable seamless communication between providers so that they can all remain updated on management plans and progress for each patient.\u201d<\/p>\n

A longer-term objective is to introduce a virtual psoriasis patient education group, offering insights about disease management in areas such as nutrition, lifestyle medicine, pediatric psoriasis, and psoriatic arthritis. Bethany Cucka, a third-year student at the UConn School of Medicine, is launching the program, with the first webinar taking place March 31 at 6 p.m.<\/p>\n

\u201cPsoriasis can be a systemic inflammatory condition and may increase the risk for other medical diseases,\u201d Rothe says. \u201cPatients with psoriasis, especially those with moderate and severe forms, are at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, fatty liver, psoriatic arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease. Psoriasis can also be overwhelming and stressful for patients and may place them at risk for mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elizabeth, who\u2019s been Rothe\u2019s patient for more than a decade, recalls some of those challenges, particularly as a young adult.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t go anywhere where somebody didn\u2019t stop me and say, \u2018Oh, my God, what happened to your legs?\u2019\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019ve always felt that I was lucky to have two legs to have it on, and I always knew there was something that was far worse that I could have. That\u2019s what my perspective was, but I think that for some people it really is more emotionally damaging.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the course of nearly 40 years, Elizabeth tried just about any recommendation to manage her psoriasis. As biologics started to become available, she was hesitant. She credits Rothe with helping her overcome her resistance to the idea and give adalimumab (sold as Humira) a try.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was probably five years ago, and I haven\u2019t had psoriasis since,\u201d Elizabeth says. \u201cI really, really trusted her. That was a huge step for me and I kind of took that leap, and she was right. I haven\u2019t had side effects and it\u2019s just been a game-changer in terms of my comfort level, because psoriasis is really uncomfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Continuing the prescribed maintenance doses, she\u2019s been able to stay clear and symptom-free.<\/p>\n

\u201cRecently when I saw Dr. Rothe, she said, \u2018I almost forget that you have it,\u2019 because it\u2019s just not there, where it was everywhere,\u201d Elizabeth says. \u201cShe\u2019s just so caring and was always trying to find something that worked. I think having a center dedicated to psoriasis is really neat, and this is the type of care patients can expect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Treatment options available at the UConn Health Dermatology Psoriasis Center include ultraviolet light therapy known as narrow band UVB, localized laser treatments, and biologic injections. The center has dedicated staff to facilitate insurance authorization to help ensure optimal patient access.<\/p>\n

\u201cUConn Health also has an infusion center at the Outpatient Pavilion where we are able to provide biologic agents that require intravenous administration,\u201d Rothe says.<\/p>\n

Also located within the new psoriasis center is the Dermatology Clinical Trials Unit, giving patients rapid access to cutting-edge therapeutic research.<\/p>\n

Learn more about the UConn Health Dermatology Psoriasis Center<\/a> or call 860-679-4600<\/a> to schedule an appointment.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UConn Health has transformed its former John Dempsey Hospital emergency department space into a center for its dermatologists to provide coordinated care of psoriasis patients.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":111,"featured_media":170154,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2231,1868,179],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2010],"class_list":["post-170207","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-well-being","category-meds","category-uconn-health"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-10 18:20:21","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170207","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/111"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=170207"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170207\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":170212,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170207\/revisions\/170212"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/170154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=170207"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=170207"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=170207"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=170207"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=170207"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}