Table I.
Responder characteristics of geriatric psoriasis patients (≥65 years old) compared with patients < 65 years old
| < 65 years old (n = 536) | ≥65 years old (n = 414) | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex, n (%) | < 0.001 | ||
| Male | 247 (46.2) | 246 (59.6) | |
| Female | 288 (53.8) | 167 (40.4) | |
| Age, years, median (range) | 56 (7–64) | 71 (65–95) | NA |
| Mean ± SD | 52.4 ± 11.4 | 72.4 ± 5.9 | |
| Age at onset, n (%) | NA | ||
| Early onseta | 459 (85.6) | 305 (73.7) | |
| Late onsetb | 74 (13.8) | 108 (26.1) | |
| Unknown | 2 (0.4) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Family history of psoriasis, n (%) | 0.719 | ||
| Positivec | 333 (62.2) | 266 (64.6) | |
| Negative | 118 (22.1) | 88 (21.4) | |
| Unknown | 84 (15.7) | 58 (14.1) | |
| Medical history, n (%) | |||
| Overweight (BMI > 25) | 285 (53.7) | 250 (62.3) | 0.008 |
| Hypertension | 108 (20.5) | 197 (49.0) | <0.001 |
| Hypercholesterolaemia | 68 (12.9) | 149 (37.3) | <0.001 |
| Myocardial infarction | 10 (1.9) | 35 (8.8) | <0.001 |
| Heart failure | 21 (4.0) | 66 (16.6) | <0.001 |
| Cerebral vascular accident | 9 (1.7) | 22 (5.5) | 0.002 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 25 (4.7) | 64 (15.9) | <0.001 |
| Cancerd | 44 (8.3) | 94 (23.2) | <0.001 |
| Depression | 99 (18.9) | 69 (17.3) | 0.530 |
| Use of comedicatione n (%) | 236 (44.7) | 306 (75.6) | < 0.001 |
Values might not add up due to missing values.
Defined as onset of symptoms before and
after the age of 40 years (14).
Including all family members affected by psoriasis. Separate analyses were done only including first-degree family members; 233 (43.6%) patients < 65 years old reported 1 or more affected first-degree family members, compared with 206 (50.0%) patients ≥ 65 years old (p = 0.142).
Excluding non-melanoma skin cancer (n = 25). In uncertain cases (e.g. 30 patients reported “skin cancer”), patients were included in the analysis.
Other than psoriasis medication.
NA: not applicable, since the categorization of patients in separate age groups automatically leads to differences in age-related variables; BMI: body mass index; SD: standard deviation.