BMI independently linked to development of psoriasis: Study

A study was conducted by a group of researchers from the United States of America, to compare the occurrence of psoriasis among patients categorized by various BMI interpretations namely: normal or underweight, overweight, obese class 1, obese class 2/3.

They did a retrospective cohort evaluation of a demographically heterogeneous population of over 1.5 million patients in the United States of America between January 1, 2008, to September 9, 2019.

The researchers found that:

· Crude incidence of psoriasis per 10,000 person-years was directly proportional to the BMI class: obese class 2/3 (17.4%); obese class 1 (14.2%); overweight (11.9%); normal or underweight (9.5%). Thus, the crude incidence of psoriasis per 10,000 person-years was highest in the obese class 2/3 and lowest in the normal or underweight.

· Also, as compared to patients with BMI less than 25.0, those who were either overweight, obese class 1, or obese class 2/3 showed significantly greater risks for developing psoriasis.

Thus, the researchers concluded that body mass index (BMI) directly and independently regulates the occurrence of psoriasis. Also, there seems to be a graded linkage between BMI and the risk of psoriasis.

Reference:

A study titled, "Risk of psoriasis according to body mass index: A retrospective cohort analysis" by Norden A published in the JAAD journal.

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaad.2021.06.012