On the Heels of ODAC—Five Minutes With Faculty on the Best ODAC Takeaways!

Welcome back, MedscapeLIVE! Dermatology readers! A lot has happened this year in dermatology, and the recent ODAC Dermatology conference connected attendees with many of these topics and research findings that can already be implemented into your clinical practice.

Drs. Peter Lio, Jennifer Seoung, and Steven Daveluy, who served as ODAC faculty, share pearls they provided to attendees, as well as a pearl or two they took away themselves. We are very grateful to these doctors for taking the time to share critical ODAC takeaways. Scroll down to read!

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Don’t miss this month’s Derm Resource section—which includes articles from JAMA Dermatology, Dermatology News, Cutis, NEJM and more.

Thank you again to Dr. Battle for sharing his time and perspective. Please contact me at colleen@cmhadvisors.com with comments or suggestions, and thanks for reading!—Colleen Hutchinson

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On the Heels of ODAC—Five Minutes With Faculty on the Best ODAC Takeaways!

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Dr. Lio, can you share pearls from See How EBGLYSS Can Leave a Lasting Impression at ODAC?

Dr. Lio: There are some exciting new targeted options emerging for atopic dermatitis, including lebrikizumab (EBGLYSS), with an increasing focus on durability of response and patient-centered outcomes. Educational sessions like this help clinicians think critically about how new therapies may fit into real-world care.

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Dr. Soung, can you share takeaways from GLP-1 Agonists in Cutaneous Medicine: Rapid-Fire Insights on Comorbidities, Safety, and Aesthetic Considerations?

Dr. Soung: Patients living with psoriasis and obesity who have additional comorbidities benefit from weight loss with GLP-1. Whether GLP-1RAs exert direct anti-inflammatory effects beyond weight loss remains an active question. As we continue to learn more about the broad health effects of GLPs, this reinforces the importance of a comprehensive treatment strategy for patients with psoriasis and metabolic comorbidities—one that addresses not only skin and joint disease, but also obesity and associated cardiovascular events. Patients will lose hair (telogen effluvium & androgenetic alopecia were the most common patterns). Ask for permission to talk about weight: “I’m worried your weight may be impacting your health; would it be ok if we talked about it?”

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What are the main practical updates from Psoriasis & Psoriatic Arthritis: Systemic Treatment Selection & Managing Comorbidities that could be helpful to our readers?

Dr. Soung: TB screening is no longer needed for IL17 or IL23 biologics. Oral Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor (RINVOQ) is highly effective for patients who have primarily palmoplantar psoriasis. The NPF medical board endorsed the reclassification of severity for psoriasis as topical versus systemic, emphasizing that severity goes beyond BSA and includes an adequate trial of topical therapy or involvement of a high impact area.

Strober BE, Blauvelt A, van de Kerkhof PC, González-Cantero Á, El-Kalioby M, Gonzalez C, Matlock BH, Rob F, Asawanonda P, Chandra R, Maul JT, Torres T, Skov L. International Psoriasis Council psoriasis disease severity reclassification: Update on validity, acceptance, and implementation. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2025 Oct;93(4):1154-1157. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2025.05.1445. Epub 2025 Jun 6. PMID: 40484137.

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Can you give us a couple pearls that came out of Medical Dermatology for the Boards at ODAC?

Dr. Daveluy: We should be offering antimalarials, like hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil), to all of our patients with discoid lupus. Hydroxychloroquine reduces the risk of developing systemic lupus by 87%. Risk factors for systemic lupus in patients with discoid lupus include higher ANA titer (≥1:320), age under 25 at diagnosis, female sex, arthralgia, skin type V-VI, and nail changes.

We should consider adjuvant radiation after excision in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma with high-risk features, including perineural invasion (named nerve or diameter ≥0.1 mm), clinical diameter ≥6 cm, recurrent tumors, close or positive margins when further surgery is not feasible. The strongest evidence for benefit of adjuvant radiation is seen with perineural invasion and regional metastasis.

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Did you get any stellar questions you can share here in the Ask Me Anything panel?

Dr. Daveluy: Laser hair removal can be a very effective treatment for early HS. It can offer long-lasting remission with minimal side effects. Insurance coverage can be challenging, especially since there is no CPT code for the procedure currently. You can use the 17999 code, which is an unlisted skin procedure. The reimbursement is unpredictable, and you usually won't know until you perform the procedure and submit the claim. The destruction benign codes (17110 and 17111) are also options. Either way, it's a good idea to check with the insurance and get approval ahead of time. If you can't get coverage, offering the procedure at a discounted rate is an option to help patients. All light-based laser hair removal devices work (Nd:YAG, Alexandrite, Diode, Intense Pulsed Light). The treatment is just like normal laser hair removal, treating the entire area with appropriate overlap. Then you just double pulse any HS lesions.

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Dr. Soung: What to do when a psoriasis patient is a primary responder to treatment and has a flare?

If the patient is an initial responder (clear/almost clear), then I explore triggers–recent illness, stress, surgery, missed injection due to insurance/pharmacy issues.

→ add topical, oral or extra injection
Primary failure: No response at all. Review diagnosis. Switch class of biologics.

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Dr. Lio: There were thoughtful questions around treatment sequencing and how to approach patients with partial or plateauing responses. These reflect very real clinical challenges where there is often more "art" than "science.”

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Were there any specific takeaways you learned at the meeting that you will look to incorporate back in your own practice?

Dr. Lio: The meeting reinforced the importance of reassessing response over time and aiming for durable disease control rather than short-term improvement alone. One of my favorite parts was the incredible interactions and discussions between the sessions with the faculty and attendees. I am already looking forward to next year!

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Dr. Daveluy: JAK inhibitors are showing promising results for lupus and dermatomyositis in clinical trials. They will help us a great deal in managing these connective tissue diseases.

The warnings contained in the FDA boxed warning for the class of JAK inhibitors have not been seen in the JAK inhibitors that are approved for dermatologic conditions. It's important to discuss the boxed warning with patients, since you don't want them to discover it on their own and take it out of context. It's great that we can reassure our patients that these side effects are not increased in the JAK inhibitors that we utilize for skin disease.

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Can you share the main takeaways in From Biologics to Oral Therapies: An Overview of Hidradenitis Suppurativa Medical Treatment?

Dr. Daveluy: Don't miss the window of opportunity in hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). The disease becomes more refractory to therapy as it progresses and develops tunnels. Start effective therapy, such as a biologic, early to prevent progression. Four inflammatory lesions at the same time qualifies as moderate disease and makes a patient a biologic candidate. Don't wait for tunnel formation, try to prevent tunnels.

Determining whether a patient needs to escalate medical therapy or undergo surgery is vital in the assessment of HS. Medical therapy addresses inflammation, reduces erythema, pain, and prevents new lesions. Persistent or recurrent lesions (especially tunnels) don't usually respond to medical therapy. They require surgery.

Most patients need a medication regimen, combining multiple therapies like a biologic, spironolactone, finasteride, metformin, zinc, and oral contraceptives.

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What are the main pearls you shared in Bridging Care Across Skin & Joints?

Dr. Soung: Always screen for PsA prior to determining your treatment for plaque psoriasis. I like using the PEST questionnaire.

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What are the main practical updates you shared in AD and Regional Eczemas: What’s the Latest?

Dr. Lio: I highlighted practical considerations for treating regional eczema, such as hands and in particular, face and neck, where disease behavior and treatment tolerability can differ from classic AD. Black tea compresses have changed my practice for eczema on the head and neck. You can see more here: https://chicagoeczema.com/black-tea-compress/

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Need CME in 2026? Head to New York, Las Vegas, Chicago….or even stay home!

We’ve got you covered with these 2026 CME conference opportunities. Register now using the links provided and get those CME requirements off your plate:

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Pigmentary Disorders Exchange (PDE) Symposium 2026

June 6-7, 2026 | Loews Chicago Hotel in Chicago, IL

For more info, click here!

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COMPLIMENTARY: Virtual Hair & Scalp Disorders: The Rx Pad and Beyond

June 20, 2026

Online!

For more info, click here!

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Las Vegas Derm (27^th Annual!)

September 17-19, 2026