Evaluation of Vitamin D Levels in Psoriasis Patients

Study Design Subjects will be recruited from an outpatient population of subjects with psoriasis from Dr. Jennifer Soung's clinic at the Gottschalk Medical Plaza at the University of California, Irvine. Subjects with the requisite diagnosis of psoriasis who are starting a new form of therapy will be candidates for enrollment. Subjects who choose not to participate in the study will receive their standard of care treatment without any monitoring for vitamin D level. The protocol for this study is as follows.

Subjects will be screened and consented. Upon entry into the study, the study subject's severity of disease will be evaluated by the investigator, using the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI), Body Surface Area (BSA), and Physician's Global Assessment (PGA). These assessments will be repeated at all future study visits.

Subjects will receive whichever standard of care treatment for their psoriasis as if they were not participating in this study. Subjects will have their disease severity evaluated and a vitamin D level drawn at Baseline (prior to initiating treatment), Week 12, Week 24, and Week 52.

Study Procedures:

All study procedures will take place at the UCI Dermatology Research Center and Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTS) located at 843 Health Sciences Road, Irvine, CA 92697. The subject will be informed of his or her vitamin D level results at any time. Should the level be dangerously low (per the laboratory reference point), the subject will be treated for vitamin D deficiency as necessary per standard of care. Subjects will be categorized as starting topical therapy, phototherapy and systemic therapy, or biologic therapy. For all Vitamin D level testing in this protocol, the Vitamin D 25-hydroxy level will be drawn, which involves 0.5mL of blood per draw.