Semaglutide Reduces Psoriasis Severity and Inflammation in Obese Diabetic Patients

Semaglutide reduced pro-inflammatory markers and improved psoriatic skin lesions in obese patients with type 2 diabetes in a randomized clinical trial.

Petković-Dabić, Jelena et al.·Biomolecules·2025·Moderate EvidenceRandomized Controlled Trial
RPEP-13035Randomized Controlled TrialModerate Evidence2025RETHINKTHC RESEARCH DATABASErethinkthc.com/research

Quick Facts

Study Type
Randomized Controlled Trial
Evidence
Moderate Evidence
Sample
N=31
Participants
Obese adults with T2D and psoriasis

What This Study Found

Semaglutide reduced serum pro-inflammatory factors (CRP, cytokines, homocysteine) and improved psoriatic lesion severity in obese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Key Numbers

31 patients: 15 semaglutide + metformin, 16 control (metformin alone). 12-week trial. Psoriasis severity and CRP, cytokines, and homocysteine measured.

How They Did This

Open-label, randomized clinical trial investigating semaglutide effects on serum inflammatory markers and psoriasis clinical severity in obese T2D patients.

Why This Research Matters

Many patients have both diabetes and psoriasis. If semaglutide can treat both simultaneously, it simplifies treatment and addresses the shared inflammatory mechanisms driving both diseases.

The Bigger Picture

This adds to evidence that GLP-1 drugs have systemic anti-inflammatory effects that benefit conditions far beyond diabetes, including autoimmune skin diseases.

What This Study Doesn't Tell Us

Open-label design — patients and clinicians knew who received semaglutide, potentially biasing assessments. Cannot separate anti-inflammatory effects from weight loss effects on psoriasis.

Questions This Raises

  • ?Would semaglutide help psoriasis patients who do not have diabetes?
  • ?How does semaglutide's psoriasis benefit compare to dedicated biologic psoriasis treatments?

Trust & Context

Key Stat:
Psoriasis improved Semaglutide reduced both inflammatory blood markers and visible psoriatic skin lesions in obese diabetic patients
Evidence Grade:
Randomized clinical trial, though open-label design is a limitation. Provides stronger evidence than observational reports of skin improvements with GLP-1 drugs.
Study Age:
Published in 2025, providing randomized trial evidence for GLP-1 drug effects on psoriasis.
Original Title:
Effects of Semaglutide Treatment on Psoriatic Lesions in Obese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: An Open-Label, Randomized Clinical Trial.
Published In:
Biomolecules, 15(1) (2025)
Database ID:
RPEP-13035

Evidence Hierarchy

Meta-Analysis / Systematic Review
Randomized Controlled TrialGold standard for testing treatments
This study
Cohort / Case-Control
Cross-Sectional / Observational
Case Report / Animal Study

Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or placebo groups to test cause and effect.

What do these levels mean? →

Frequently Asked Questions

Can semaglutide help with psoriasis?

This randomized trial found semaglutide reduced inflammatory markers and improved psoriasis severity in obese diabetic patients. The anti-inflammatory effects of GLP-1 drugs appear to benefit the skin as well as metabolism.

Is psoriasis connected to diabetes?

Yes. Both conditions involve chronic inflammation, and they share risk factors like obesity. Having one increases the risk of the other, and treating the shared inflammatory pathways may benefit both conditions.

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Cite This Study

RPEP-13035·https://rethinkpeptides.com/research/RPEP-13035

APA

Petković-Dabić, Jelena; Binić, Ivana; Carić, Bojana; Božić, Ljiljana; Umičević-Šipka, Sanja; Bednarčuk, Nataša; Dabić, Saša; Šitum, Mirna; Popović-Pejičić, Snježana; Stojiljković, Miloš P; Škrbić, Ranko. (2025). Effects of Semaglutide Treatment on Psoriatic Lesions in Obese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: An Open-Label, Randomized Clinical Trial.. Biomolecules, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.3390/biom15010046

MLA

Petković-Dabić, Jelena, et al. "Effects of Semaglutide Treatment on Psoriatic Lesions in Obese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: An Open-Label, Randomized Clinical Trial.." Biomolecules, 2025. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom15010046

RethinkPeptides

RethinkPeptides Research Database. "Effects of Semaglutide Treatment on Psoriatic Lesions in Obe..." RPEP-13035. Retrieved from https://rethinkpeptides.com/research/petkovic-dabic-2025-effects-of-semaglutide-treatment

Access the Original Study

Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.

This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkPeptides research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.