Particulate matter likely provokes inflammatory reactions in individuals with chronic skin disorders like atopic dermatitis, however, no study has examined the relationship between particulate matter and psoriasis exacerbation.

A recent study evaluated possible associations between particulate matter and hospital visits for psoriasis patients in 7 major cities in South Korea by utilizing psoriasis patient data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service database. Additionally, PM10 and PM2.5 concentration data of a 3-year time frame were extracted from the Korea Environment Corporation.

The following observations were made-

• A pattern analysis generated by the sample cross-correlation function and time series regression demonstrated a correlation between particulate matter concentration and the number of hospital visits by psoriasis patients.
• The prewhitening method, which minimizes the effects of other variables besides particulate matter, demonstrated no correlation between the two.

Thus no impact of particulate matter on hospital visit frequency among psoriasis patients was demonstrated.

SOURCE- Lee EH, Ryu D, Hong NS, Kim JY, Park KD, Lee WJ, Lee SJ, Kim SH, Do Y, Jang YH.   Defining the Relationship between Daily Exposure to Particulate Matter and Hospital Visits by Psoriasis Patients. Ann Dermatol. 2022 Feb;34(1):40-45.  https://doi.org/10.5021/ad.2022.34.1.40