Monitoring for methotrexate induced liver fibrosis in many UK dermatology centres is out of date and needs reform

Screening for hepatic fibrosis in patients with psoriasis prescribed methotrexate: can we make a change?

The aim of this study was to assess whether correlation existed between procollagen III N-terminal peptide levels, used for monitoring for hepatic fibrosis in patients with psoriasis prescribed methotrexate, and other screening tools (Fibrosis-4 score) and then resultant FibroScan®, with the aim of potentially altering current clinical practice. The retrospective analysis highlighted how both screening tools, if used, can prompt onward referral for FibroScan; however, the small sample size limited statistical conclusions. Nevertheless, we feel this observational study can help guide future investigation into potential changes to hepatic fibrosis monitoring for this cohort.