Abstract
The 2022 annual meeting of the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) was held from July 14 to 17, 2022, in New York City, New York, USA, and was attended by 420 rheumatologists, dermatologists, basic scientists, allied health professionals, patient research partners, and industry partners from 31 countries. A GRAPPA executive retreat, a Trainee Symposium, and the Patient Research Partners Network meeting were held prior to the annual meeting. Presentations included updates in basic research, focusing on biomarkers, personalization of treatments, and the promise of single-cell omics, elucidating the pathogenesis of psoriatic disease (PsD). Presentations also highlighted guttate and plaque psoriasis (PsO), the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and its treatments on patients with PsD globally, and the effects of sex and gender in PsD. Reports of ongoing projects included an update on the recently published treatment recommendations, educational initiatives, and the Diagnostic Ultrasound Enthesitis Tool (DUET) study. A session on early identification of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) among patients with PsO included an update on PsA screening tools. Debates were held on whether early intervention for PsO will reduce PsA, whether interleukin (IL)-17 or IL-23 inhibition is a better treatment for PsO and PsA, similarities and differences between axial PsA and axial spondyloarthritis with PsO, and data affecting the understanding of guttate and plaque PsO. Reports from the International Dermatology Outcome Measures (IDEOM) and Young GRAPPiAns concurrent sessions were presented in addition to reports of several other partner groups. Here, we highlight features of the annual meeting and introduce the manuscripts published together as a meeting report.
Members of the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) met for their 2022 annual meeting in New York City, New York, USA, to discuss research, education, partnerships, current and developing assessment and treatment recommendations, professional development, and other initiatives in the fields of psoriasis (PsO) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA). GRAPPA was formed in 2003 and includes members in the fields of rheumatology, dermatology, basic scientists, allied health professionals, patient research partners, and industry partners from around the world. The membership demographics and GRAPPA organizational structure are presented in Table 1 and Table 2.
Composition of GRAPPA members.
GRAPPA Executive and Steering Committee Membership.
Prior to the meeting, the GRAPPA leadership, including board members, steering committee members, and others in leadership roles (Table 2), congregated for a strategic planning meeting to review a survey related to GRAPPA’s performance in research, education, assessment and treatment recommendations, professional development and collaboration, and organizational strength and communication. The group identified successes and areas for further improvement, identified key GRAPPA priorities and activities for the next 5 years, and explored committee structures to best support these aims.1
The GRAPPA Patient Research Partner Network (PRPN) met prior to the meeting. The PRPN currently has 12 members from 7 countries with various backgrounds and careers who work to support the physicians, researchers, and scientists of the greater GRAPPA community. Seven members of the PRPN attended the annual GRAPPA meeting in person in 2022 and were included in the leadership retreat and gave input throughout the annual meeting.2
Young GRAPPiAns hosted an evening networking reception after the opening of the meeting. Young-GRAPPA (Y-GRAPPA) was introduced at the 2021 GRAPPA annual meeting and now has approximately 100 members (56% female, 28% dermatologists, 72% rheumatologists) from different parts of the world. Y-GRAPPA members attended the GRAPPA Leadership Retreat. In their one year of existence, they have set up their own governance, fully participated in research collaborations, and furthered aims important to GRAPPA including education, career development, communication (web page, social media, annual newsletter), and more. Later in the meeting, a Networking Workshop was held for Y-GRAPPA.3
Drs. M. Elaine Husni, MD, MPH, and April Armstrong, MD, MPH, cochaired the 2022 Trainee Symposium, which led the agenda of the first full day of the meeting. Dr. Lihi Eder, MD, PhD, helped adjudicate submitted abstracts and led the poster tour at the symposium. A total of 43 abstracts were submitted, with the top 5 highest scoring abstracts selected for oral presentations, and 15 were assigned to poster presentations. Topics included basic/translational, clinical, and outcomes research.4
Recent basic science advances in psoriatic disease (PsD) presented included clinical applications of biomarkers and what the future of biomarkers for PsD may hold, challenges of developing biomarker research to the point of clinical utility, advances in total body–positron emission tomography/computed tomography imaging, and emerging concepts from single-cell studies in PsD.5
Important developments in current health perspectives as relates to PsO and PsA were presented. One session provided a global perspective on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) risk factors, treatments, vaccinations, and how COVID-19 affected patients with PsO and PsA.6 Another session highlighted issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion in people with PsD, specifically concerning sex and gender and their intersectionality with race and ethnicity in individuals with PsA.7
Project highlights included a presentation of the recently published treatment recommendations,8 GRAPPA educational initiatives, and how axial involvement should be defined in patients with PsA. Clinical and molecular characteristics of axial PsA and a report on the Axial Involvement in Psoriatic Arthritis (AXIS) study were presented. The AXIS study has both high educational and high research value.9
Winners of past pilot awards were given time to present their research outcomes. Titles included the following: “Validating feasible composite disease activity measures for use in daily clinical practice in patients with PsA,” “Therapeutic exploration of probiotic strain L. reuteri in Western diet–induced psoriatic skin inflammation,” and “Can magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) differentiate patients with axial spondyloarthritis from patients with PsA with axial involvement?”10
Partner organizations reported on co-developed projects. For example, the International Dermatology Outcome Measures (IDEOM) initiative presented an update on their progress related to patient-centered outcome measures for PsO and PsA. This included presentations from the Musculoskeletal (MSK) Symptoms working group on the development of the IDEOM Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (IDEOM MSK-Q); progress of the integration of the Psoriasis Epidemiology Screening Tool (PEST) and Psoriatic Arthritis Impact of Disease (PsAID) questionnaires into the Epic electronic health record system; and development of the DermSat-7, a 7-item treatment satisfaction questionnaire specific for dermatological conditions.11 The Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) PsA working group, which includes rheumatologists, dermatologists, methodologists, and patient research partners, provided updates on its work to evaluate composite outcome measures for PsA.12
Imaging workshops for use of ultrasound to identify early symptoms of PsO and PsA and MRI to evaluate the extent of peripheral enthesitis in patients with PsA were well attended.13,14 Another important presentation was on the role of dermatologists in identifying PsA in patients with skin manifestations of PsO in order to more rapidly diagnose PsA and form a care team with rheumatologists. Screening with and without imaging, surveys of symptoms, and improving early recognition of PsA in patients with PsO were all considered crucial topics of focus now and into the future.15
A fun aspect of the annual meeting is the debates, which cover key aspects of ongoing discussions in the field of PsO and PsA. The debates at the 2022 meeting included “Can early aggressive treatment of PsO prevent PsA?” between Enrique Soriano and Alexis Ogdie16; “Interleukin (IL)-17 versus IL-23 inhibitors: which is better to treat patients with moderate-to-severe PsO and mild PsA in dermatology clinics?” between April Armstrong and Joseph Merola17; “Is axial PsA the same as ankylosing spondylitis with psoriasis: a debate” between Laura Coates and Atul Deodhar18; and “Advances and controversies in our understanding of guttate and plaque PsO” between Sam Hwang and James Krueger.19
A business meeting was held at the conclusion of the GRAPPA annual meeting, as well as meetings of the Collaborative Research Network20 and the PRPN as a follow-up to their earlier meeting. The next annual GRAPPA meeting will be held in Dublin, Ireland, from July 13 to 15, 2023.
The articles reporting on all these excellent presentations have been compiled, edited by a professional editing company, and reviewed/approved by all authors and representatives appointed by the GRAPPA publishing committee.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors acknowledge the important contribution of Jodi L. Johnson, PhD, Medical Writer, who contributed to the prologue as well as provided editorial support for the papers included in this supplement. Special thanks to Judi Pickell for the tireless organizational efforts to make the meeting run smoothly.
Footnotes
As part of the supplement series GRAPPA 2022, this report was reviewed internally and approved by the Guest Editors for integrity, accuracy, and consistency with scientific and ethical standards.
Financial support to enable the 2022 annual GRAPPA meeting was provided by AbbVie, Amgen, Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS, Janssen, Eli Lilly, Novartis, Pfizer, and UCB.
ABG has received honoraria as an advisory board member and consultant for Amgen, AnaptypsBio, Avotres Therapeutics, BI, BMS, Dice Therapeutics, Dermavant, Eli Lilly, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi, Sun Pharma, UCB, and Xbiotech, and has received research/educational grants from AnaptypsBio, Moonlake Immunotherapeutics, Novartis, BMS, and UCB (all paid to Mount Sinai School of Medicine). AWA has served as a research investigator and/or scientific adviser to AbbVie, Almirall, Arcutis, Aslan, Beiersdorf, BI, BMS, EPI, Incyte, Leo, UCB, Janssen, Lilly, Nimbus, Novartis, Ortho Dermatologics, Sun, Dermavant, Dermira, Sanofi, Regeneron, and Pfizer. OF has received grants for research and honoraria for advice and lectures from AbbVie, Lilly, Pfizer, Novartis, Janssen, BMS, UCB, and Biogen. DDG received consulting fees from AbbVie, Amgen, BMS, Eli Lilly, Galapagos, Gilead, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, and UCB, and research grants from AbbVie, Amgen, Eli Lilly, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, and UCB.
This paper does not require institutional review board approval.
- Accepted for publication May 30, 2023.
- Copyright © 2023 by the Journal of Rheumatology
