8 Dermatology Headlines You Missed in August 2025

The field of dermatology saw a variety of leaps forward in the month of August 2025 in terms of new research into treatments for a variety of disease states. This new iteration of the HCPLive Month in Review series provides a list of some of the most notable highlights of news coverage in the dermatology space.

This review of dermatology coverage highlights stories related to alopecia areata, hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), psoriasis, and chronic urticaria. Treatments investigated in the month of August included such drugs as baricitinib, guselkumab, roflumilast, and even alternative therapies. The following list spotlights some of these notable news stories:

Alopecia Areata News:

Stem Cells, Laser Treatments, Other Alternative Therapies Effective for Alopecia

One study highlighted in August demonstrated that the use of low-level laser therapy (LLLT), stem cells, and natural oils may be effective as alternatives for alopecia management, with diverse mechanisms of action and generally favorable safety profiles being shown.1 This review, authored by such investigators as William Abou Shahla, MD, from the Department of Dermatology at the American University of Beirut Medical Center in Lebanon, resulted from a comprehensive review of alternative options to treat alopecia outside of the more widely-accepted utilization of minoxidil.

Real-World Study Affirms Baricitinib’s Efficacy for Alopecia Areata

Another study highlighted baricitinib’s efficacy in the treatment of alopecia areata, alopecia totalis, alopecia universalis, and eyebrow and eyelash alopecia.2 The trial investigators in this analysis had set out to evaluate the effectiveness and safety results of baricitinib in a real-world setting among 47 Chinese trial subjects treated at Xijing Hospital of Fourth Military Medical University. Their retrospective study’s main endpoint was the change in Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) score during treatment.

Dimethylglycine Sodium Salt and Caffeine Shampoo Effective in Androgenetic Alopecia

A novel dimethylglycine sodium salt (DMG-Na) and caffeine-containing shampoo designed to treat androgenetic alopecia was shown to be effective among patients, another August study suggests, as promising results and a lack of notable side effects were highlighted.3 The trial investigators noted that adequate microcirculation was closely associated with hair growth, so the team's study was conducted to look into whether a shampoo containing DMG-Na in combination with caffeine could be useful for androgenetic alopecia. The study involved 154 men, with a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled design being used to evaluate the shampoo.

Psoriasis News:

Guselkumab Improves Symptoms, Stigmatization with Long-Term Use for Psoriasis

In another August story, the long-term use of guselkumab was shown toimprove skin symptoms, sexual impairment issues, and feelings of stigmatization in patient with psoriasis.4 The data from the G-EPOSS study were authored by investigators such as Sascha Gerdes, MD, of the Department of Dermatology at the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein in Germany. The G-EPOSS study involved 295 subjects, with 87.5% attaining PASI ≤3 and 47.3% attaining complete disease clearance by the 76-week mark. Gerdes and coauthors’ study emphasized the value of considering patient perspectives and sensitive issues for optimal psoriasis management.

Psoriasis Linked to Increased Cardiovascular, Suicide Related Mortality Risk

Another study suggested that psoriasis was linked with risk increases of all-cause, cardiovascular, infection-related, and suicide mortality.5 Investigators of this analysis highlighted that current psoriasis treatments often demonstrate high recurrence rates and suboptimal long-term efficacy, with the need for improved strategies being suggested. This systematic review and meta-analysis involved an assessment of 20 cohort studies with > 8 million participants, shedding light on the potential need for enhanced monitoring and targeted interventions to prevent adverse outcomes in the psoriasis patient population, particularly for individuals with severe disease.

Roflumilast Cream 0.3% Effective for Psoriasis in Children Aged 2 to 11 Years

Treatment with roflumilast cream 0.3% among children aged 2 - 11 years with plaque psoriasis demonstrated safety, tolerability, and efficacy under maximal use conditions.6 Such findings on the safety, pharmacokinetics (PK), tolerability, and efficacy of roflumilast cream were noted as consistent with previous phase 3 data on patients aged ≥ 2 years and maximal usage data in patients in the ≥ 12-year age range. Adelaide Hebert, MD, professor and director of pediatric dermatology with McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, authored this new analysis with a team of investigators. Hebert’s team had looked at a pair of phase 2, open-label, maximal usage analyses, with each study taking place over the course of 4 weeks and involving participants aged 2 - 5 years and aged 6 - 11 years.

Other News:

Omalizumab, Remibrutinib Most Effective for Refractory Chronic Urticaria

Standard-dose omalizumab and remibrutinib were shown in another story covered in August to be the most effective medications for individuals with chronic urticaria refractory to antihistamines.7 Chronic urticaria, which these trial investigators highlighted is characterized by itchy wheals or angioedema, can last ≥ 6 weeks. Those who do not respond to antihistamines have options, comparisons between alternative systemic treatments had previously not been examined. Therefore, this meta-analysis compared the benefits and harms of systemic treatments for chronic urticaria, using a search for randomized clinical trials in the Medline, Embase, Central, Chinese Biomedical databases.

Secukinumab’s Serum Pharmacokinetics, Safety Results Highlighted in Patients with HS

These findings highlighted in August suggested that serum PK and drug concentration levels of secukinumab in those with HS are impacted by disease severity, body weight, and baseline high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) levels.8 Afsaneh Alavi, MD, from the Mayo Clinic’s Department of Dermatology, led a team of investigators in the authoring of this study. This was an exploratory analysis of the pooled phase 3 SUNSHINE and SUNRISE trial program findings, with the investigators looking into serum PK as well as safety data on secukinumab 300 mg provided to patients every 2 weeks (SECQ2W) or every 4 weeks (SECQ4W).

References

1. Shahla WA, Daou R, et al. Alternative Therapies for Hair Loss: Stem Cells, Oils, and Laser Treatment. Dermatological Reviews, 6: e70050. https://doi.org/10.1002/der2.70050.

2. Wang C, Xing X, Wang S, et al. Efficacy and Safety of Baricitinib in Patients With Alopecia Areata: A Real-World Cohort Study. Wiley. August 6, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1155/dth/6399048.

3. L Celleno, C Bussoletti, MV Tolaini, et al. “ A Novel Approach Against Male Pattern Hair Loss With Topical Dimethylglycine Sodium Salt (DMG-Na) and Caffeine: Efficacy of a 24-Week, Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial,” Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology 24, no. 8 (2025): e70390, https://doi.org/10.1111/jocd.70390.

4. S Gerdes, P Weisenseel, D Groß, et al. “Long-Term Impact of Guselkumab on Skin, Sexuality, and Perceived Stigmatization in Patients With Psoriasis in Routine Clinical Practice: Week 76 Effectiveness and Safety Results From the Prospective German Multicenter G-EPOSS Study,” The Journal of Dermatology (2025): 1–14, https://doi.org/10.1111/1346-8138.17866.

5. Yang Y, Zhang Q, Huang A, et al. All-cause and cause-specific mortality in psoriasis patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Front. Immunol. 16:1610499. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2025.1610499.

6. AA Hebert, SV Guide, V Groysman, et al. “ Early Evidence of Safety, Clinical Benefit, and Pharmacokinetics of Roflumilast Cream 0.3% Once Daily for Treatment of Mild or Moderate Plaque Psoriasis in Children Aged 2–11 Years,” Pediatric Dermatology (2025): 1–4, https://doi.org/10.1111/pde.70013.

7. Chu AWL, Oykhman P, Chu X, et al. Comparative efficacy and safety of biologics and systemic immunomodulatory treatments for chronic urticaria: Systematic review and network meta-analysis. J Allergy Clin Immunol. Published online July 11, 2025. doi:10.1016/j.jaci.2025.06.004.

8. A Alavi, Z Reguiai, GBE Jemec, et al. “ Secukinumab in the Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Hidradenitis Suppurativa: Pooled Pharmacokinetics and Safety Results From the SUNSHINE and SUNRISE Phase 3 Studies,” International Journal of Dermatology (2025): 1–10, https://doi.org/10.1111/ijd.70025.