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THE UNWEARABLE COLLECTION™

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO WEAR A GPP FLARE?

The Unwearable Collection™, the first campaign of its kind, is designed to help others understand the range of debilitating effects GPP can have on patients.1-6

BEHIND THE COLLECTION

Boehringer Ingelheim partnered with internationally renowned designer Bart Hess to create a fashion collection that conveys the suffering people living with GPP may endure: a collection that’s impossible to ignore—and impossible to wear. The designer made use of unconventional materials such as paper, plexiglass, and knives to develop The Unwearable Collection™.

SEE THE COLLECTION

See how one artist interpreted the very real and raw experiences of people living with GPP to create a collection exploring pain, isolation, and more.

The Unwearable Collection
Physical Pain Collection

   

PHYSICAL PAIN

To say that Generalized Pustular Psoriasis (GPP) can hurt is an understatement. The pain associated with GPP flares can be debilitating.1,5"...it feels like a paper cut, but times 10,000." -Dale

Pain of isolation collection

PAIN OF ISOLATION

The effects of GPP can extend far beyond the body; they can impact the way patients interact with the world.2-4"I was also socially isolated. I would get comments, people staring, people being really... rude. And it did get to the point where I didn't really want to go out anymore." -Christine

Flare Intensity collection

FLARE INTENSITY

Imagine a force that threatens to overpower you at any time. Now imagine that force taking over your body.1,5,7-9"When my GPP flares up, it can start with a simple fever... once my skin starts to turn red, little blisters or pustules can start to appear. After those blisters have developed, sometimes they will continue developing until they are lakes." -Brandon

Life-threatening collection

LIFE-THREATENING

People with GPP have more to worry about than just what appears on their skin.1,5-7 Flares can erupt quickly and require urgent care, and their associated complications can become life-threatening if left untreated.5,6,8"When I'm having a really bad flare, there are times when it feels like someone is stabbing me with lots of knives, over and over again." -Christine

BART HESS

Designer

“This outfit captures how the symptoms of GPP keep Christine physically and emotionally separated from the people she loves.”

Bart Hess creating the pain of isolation

CHRISTINE

Person living with GPP

“When I was first diagnosed and the GPP was so bad all over my entire body, I could not pick up my daughter. Even if she touched me, I would move away because sometimes just lightly brushing up against different parts of my body hurt so badly.”

A picture of Christine, a person living with GPP

GPP=Generalized Pustular Psoriasis; IL-36=interleukin-36.

REFERENCES

  1. Skalicky A, Rentz A, Esser D, Thoma C, Gloede T. Symptom experience of patients with generalized pustular psoriasis (GPP). Value in Health. 2020;23(suppl 1):S345. Abstract PRO89. doi:10.1016/j.jval.2020.04.1310

  2. Kharawala S, Golembesky AK, Bohn RL, Esser D. The clinical, humanistic, and economic burden of generalized pustular psoriasis: a structured review. Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2020;16(3):239-252. doi:10.1080/1744666X.2019.1708193

  3. Sampogna F, Tabolli S, Söderfeldt B, Axtelius B, Aparo U, Abeni D; for the IMPROVE Investigators. Measuring quality of life of patients with different clinical types of psoriasis using the SF-36. Br J Dermatol. 2006;154(5):844-849. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2133.2005.07071.x

  4. Kotowsky N, Brunette SR, Valdecantos WC. Insights from patients with generalized pustular psoriasis: results of an online survey in the USA. Poster presented at: 30th European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress; September 29-October 2, 2021; virtual.

  5. Gooderham MJ, Van Voorhees AS, Lebwohl MG. An update on generalized pustular psoriasis. Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2019;15(9):907-919. doi:10.1080/1744666X.2019.1648209

  6. Ly K, Beck KM, Smith MP, Thibodeaux Q, Bhutani T. Diagnosis and screening of patients with generalized pustular psoriasis. Psoriasis (Auckl). 2019;9:37-42. doi:10.2147/PTT.S181808

  7. Strober B, Kotowsky N, Medeiros R, et al. Unmet medical needs in the treatment and management of generalized pustular psoriasis flares: evidence from a survey of Corrona registry dermatologists. Dermatol Ther (Heidelb). 2021;11(2):529-541. doi:10.1007/s13555-021-00493-0

  8. Shah M, Al Aboud DM, Crane JS, Kumar S. Pustular psoriasis. StatPearls. Updated May 8, 2022. Accessed January 27, 2022. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK537002/

  9. Bachelez H. Pustular psoriasis and related pustular skin diseases. Br J Dermatol. 2018;178(3):614-618. doi:10.1111/bjd.16232

  10. Johnston A, Xing X, Wolterink L, et al. IL-1 and IL-36 are dominant cytokines in generalized pustular psoriasis. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2017;140(1):109-120. doi:10.1016/j.jaci.2016.08.056