The Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology

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Dr. Werth reviews 52-week findings from the phase 2 AMETHYST study of litifilimab in patients with moderate-to-severe cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE). She highlights the rapid onset of response observed during the randomized portion of the trial and explains that patients who switched from placebo to litifilimab at Week 24 showed improvement within several weeks and subsequently approached the responses seen in patients treated from the outset. Participants who received litifilimab throughout the study continued to improve across multiple clinical endpoints through Week 52, with maintenance of previously achieved responses. Dr. Werth also notes that treatment was generally well tolerated, with no new safety signals, and that the ongoing phase 3 trial will further evaluate litifilimab’s efficacy and safety in CLE.

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Dr. Trotter discusses necessary clinical considerations and practical use cases for the treatment of severe alopecia areata with treatments such as deuruxolitinib. She highlights the importance of systemic therapy in patients with severe alopecia areata due primarily to lack of spontaneous remission and risk of disease progression. Additionally, Dr. Trotter identifies best use cases for deuruxolitinib, emphasizes the importance of patient severity assessments such as the Alopecia Areata Scale, and suggests performing regular safety checks to continuously monitor concomitant conditions and inhibitors. 

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Dr. Khattri looks at the 52-week findings from the ongoing phase 2/3 AMETHYST trial evaluating litifilimab in cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE), which were presented at the EADV Congress 2026. She notes that there are currently no FDA-approved targeted therapies for CLE, a disease that can cause permanent scarring, dyspigmentation, and scarring alopecia. Litifilimab, a monoclonal antibody that targets BDCA2, demonstrated continued improvement through 52 weeks rather than plateauing, according to Dr. Khattri. She emphasizes the importance of durability of treatment for patients with CLE who have had an inadequate response to first-line therapy.

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Dr. Brownstone discusses the place of risankizumab in the psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis treatment landscape. He discusses risankizumab’s durable response, infrequent dosing, and favorable long-term and short-term safety profiles. Dr. Brownstone references the UltIMMa-1 (NCT02684370) and UltIMMa-2 (NCT02684357) trials, which demonstrated the superior efficacy of risankizumab vs placebo and ustekinumab in this patient population. Additionally, he cites a recent anecdotal case detailing one of his patient’s positive experiences with risankizumab.

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Dr. Del Rosso, DO, the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, discusses highlights from new research published in the September 2026 issue of JCAD.

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Dr. Günther discusses her poster from the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress 2026 on transcriptomic analyses of the phase 2 LILAC trial Part B. The study examined how litifilimab affects the underlying biology of cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE). RNA sequencing demonstrated broad immune dysregulation in patients with CLE and showed that treatment with litifilimab shifted numerous disease-associated genes toward expression patterns observed in healthy individuals, including genes involved in type I interferon signaling and other inflammatory pathways. Dr. Günther also reviews 5 molecular endotypes identified by baseline gene expression. Clinical improvement was observed across the endotypes studied, supporting a treatment effect across biologically diverse groups of patients with CLE.

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Dr. Fakhoury discusses the use of systemic treatment for patients with severe alopecia areata. He highlights data from the THRIVE-AA1 and THRIVE-AA2 clinical trials, which showed effective results with deuruxilitinib vs placebo in this patient population. Additionally, he emphasizes that the indications for severe alopecia areata have expanded to those with a Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) score of 20 to 49 and outlined patient populations who could benefit from treatment with deuruxolitinib. 

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Dr. Chovatiya reviews generalized pustular psoriasis (GPP) as a distinct, potentially life-threatening inflammatory dermatosis characterized by acute flares and periods of relative quiescence. He highlights the diagnostic challenges in differentiating GPP from plaque psoriasis and other pustular disorders, as well as the central role of interleukin (IL)-36 pathway dysregulation in driving neutrophilic inflammation. He also reviews the use of intravenous therapy for rapid management of active flares and subcutaneous therapy for long-term flare prevention, and how these formulations may be incorporated across the disease course to support both acute control and ongoing GPP management. 

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Dr. Del Rosso, DO, the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, discusses highlights from new research published in the August 2026 issue of JCAD.

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Dr. Cohen discusses the treatment of psoriasis in high-impact sites. He outlines how to approach these special considerations and provides treatment options, including the utilization of biologics like risankizumab. He also reviews considerations for unique cases such as nail psoriasis and palmoplantar psoriasis.