🎰 Cross-Border Talk: High Stakes, Higher Standards — Rethinking Atopic Dermatitis & Chronic Hand Eczema (Part 1 of 2) 🇨🇦 Team Canada vs. Team USA. Different borders, shared clinical challenges—and a few (somewhat friendly) disagreements along the way! 🎙️ Live from Fall Clinical 2026 in Las Vegas, the Skin and Joints Podcast brings back its popular Cross-Border Talk segment, featuring Canadian dermatologist Dr. Andrei Metelitsa and American dermatologist Dr. Christopher Bunick. From exchange-rate banter to exchanging clinical pearls, the conversation quickly turns to some big questions in dermatology: Are we intervening early enough? Have we become too comfortable with corticosteroids? And are we setting the bar high enough for treatment success? 🔥 In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, our experts unpack their biggest takeaways from Fall Clinical, challenge conventional thinking around JAK inhibitor safety, and explore why corticosteroid stewardship and newer non-steroidal therapies could help break the cycle of therapeutic inertia in chronic hand eczema. 🔬 The discussion gets beneath the surface—literally—as they examine emerging pediatric TRAPEZE-1 data exploring IL-13 inhibition and skin barrier biomarkers, alongside AD Hand study findings that challenge how we define disease severity and meaningful treatment outcomes. 💡 And perhaps the biggest question: If a patient has limited skin involvement but can't sleep, work, or function because of their eczema, can we really call their disease mild? Two countries. Two dermatologists. One candid conversation about raising the standard of care. Because when it comes to better dermatology care, some boundaries are worth crossing. 🌎 🎯 Learning Objectives After listening to this episode, healthcare professionals should be able to: Rethink early intervention: Discuss the clinical rationale for earlier use of advanced therapies in inflammatory skin diseases and evaluate evolving evidence surrounding JAK inhibitor safety in atopic dermatitis. Challenge the corticosteroid status quo: Recognize therapeutic inertia in chronic hand eczema and explore how steroid stewardship, non-steroidal topical therapies, and appropriate treatment escalation can improve long-term management. Look beyond visible skin clearance: Interpret exploratory TRAPEZE-1 pediatric findings on skin barrier biomarkers following IL-13 inhibition, while distinguishing potential barrier restoration from established disease modification. Redefine disease burden: Examine how atopic hand eczema can profoundly affect itch, pain, sleep, daily functioning, and quality of life despite relatively limited body surface area involvement. Raise the treatment bar: Discuss minimal disease activity and the value of integrating clinician-assessed outcomes with patient-reported outcomes when establishing meaningful treatment goals. 🇨🇦 🇺🇸 Two perspectives. Plenty of clinical pearls. No passport required. #SkinAndJoints #CrossBorderTalk #FallClinical2026 #AtopicDermatitis #ChronicHandEczema #SteroidStewardship #SkinBarrier #JAKInhibitors #Dermatology SUPPORTED BY AN IME GRANT FROM LEO Pharma. About Dr. Christopher Bunick MD, PhD. Dermatologist | New Haven, CT, USA BIOGRAPHY Dr. Christopher Bunick is an Associate Professor of Dermatology and Translational Biomedicine at Yale University School of Medicine. Clinically, he specializes in general medical dermatology and dermatologic surgery. He also performs unique dermatologic research studying the three-dimensional structures of skin-related proteins using x-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy. Dr. Bunick received his B.S. at Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN), and his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. His PhD research studied the three-dimensional structures of calcium-binding proteins and proteins involved in DNA repair processes (e.g. the skin disease xeroderma pigmentosum). He completed medical internship, dermatology residency, and a dermatology research fellowship (mentored by Nobel Laureate Dr. Thomas A. Steitz) at the Yale University School of Medicine (New Haven, CT). He performs lab research with the goal of better understanding the structure-function relationship of proteins involved in normal and diseased skin and dermatologic therapeutics. His work emphasizes translation of biochemical and structural research findings into clinically meaningful and practice-changing discoveries. His work to date has advanced the field’s understanding of: (i) the molecular mechanisms of the human skin barrier; (ii) assembly mechanisms of intermediate filaments, like keratin and vimentin, leading to patents for new cytoskeleton-targeted therapeutics; (iii) the biochemical basis for antibiotic activity and resistance in Cutibacterium acnes and acne vulgaris; (iv) the structure-function relationships of anti-IL23 psoriasis biologics and how that impacts clinical efficacy; (v) the structure-function relationships of multiple dermatologic therapeutics, including atopic dermatitis biologics, Janus kinase inhibitors, PDE4 inhibitors, and more. Chris’ research has pioneered a new focus in dermatology on fundamental biochemistry and structural biology, particularly around connecting the atomic resolution mechanisms of action of a therapeutic to its clinical performance and safety. Complementing his basic science research, Chris has and continues to lead multiple dermatology clinical trials at the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation. About Dr. Andrei Meteitsa MD, FRCPC, FAAD. Dermatologist | Calgary, AB Andrei Metelitsa, MD, FRCPC is a board-certified dermatologist in both Canada and United States. He is Co-Director of the Institute for Skin Advancement in Calgary, Alberta and serves as a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Calgary. He completed his dermatology training at the University of Alberta, followed by 1 year fellowship training in Lasers and Cosmetic Surgery with SkinCare Physicians in Boston, under the direction of world-renowned faculty from Harvard University and Yale University. Dr. Metelitsa is an author of a dermatology book, as well as more than 40 book chapters and articles. His major cosmetic interests include laser surgery, non-surgical fat reduction and facial rejuvenation. He is also an avid skin cancer researcher, with a particular interest on epidemiology in Canada. Dr. Metelitsa has received more than 35 academic, research, leadership and volunteer awards throughout his career.
🇨🇦 Team Canada vs. Team USA. Different borders, shared clinical challenges—and a few (somewhat friendly) disagreements along the way!
🎙️ Live from Fall Clinical 2026 in Las Vegas, the Skin and Joints Podcast brings back its popular Cross-Border Talk segment, featuring Canadian dermatologist Dr. Andrei Metelitsa and American dermatologist Dr. Christopher Bunick.
From exchange-rate banter to exchanging clinical pearls, the conversation quickly turns to some big questions in dermatology: Are we intervening early enough? Have we become too comfortable with corticosteroids? And are we setting the bar high enough for treatment success?
🔥 In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, our experts unpack their biggest takeaways from Fall Clinical, challenge conventional thinking around JAK inhibitor safety, and explore why corticosteroid stewardship and newer non-steroidal therapies could help break the cycle of therapeutic inertia in chronic hand eczema.
🔬 The discussion gets beneath the surface—literally—as they examine emerging pediatric TRAPEZE-1 data exploring IL-13 inhibition and skin barrier biomarkers, alongside AD Hand study findings that challenge how we define disease severity and meaningful treatment outcomes.
💡 And perhaps the biggest question: If a patient has limited skin involvement but can't sleep, work, or function because of their eczema, can we really call their disease mild?
Two countries. Two dermatologists. One candid conversation about raising the standard of care.
Because when it comes to better dermatology care, some boundaries are worth crossing. 🌎
After listening to this episode, healthcare professionals should be able to:
🇨🇦 🇺🇸 Two perspectives. Plenty of clinical pearls. No passport required.
#SkinAndJoints #CrossBorderTalk #FallClinical2026 #AtopicDermatitis #ChronicHandEczema #SteroidStewardship #SkinBarrier #JAKInhibitors #Dermatology
SUPPORTED BY AN IME GRANT FROM LEO Pharma.
BIOGRAPHY
Dr. Christopher Bunick is an Associate Professor of Dermatology and Translational Biomedicine at Yale University School of Medicine. Clinically, he specializes in general medical dermatology and dermatologic surgery. He also performs unique dermatologic research studying the three-dimensional structures of skin-related proteins using x-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy. Dr. Bunick received his B.S. at Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN), and his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. His PhD research studied the three-dimensional structures of calcium-binding proteins and proteins involved in DNA repair processes (e.g. the skin disease xeroderma pigmentosum). He completed medical internship, dermatology residency, and a dermatology research fellowship (mentored by Nobel Laureate Dr. Thomas A. Steitz) at the Yale University School of Medicine (New Haven, CT). He performs lab research with the goal of better understanding the structure-function relationship of proteins involved in normal and diseased skin and dermatologic therapeutics. His work emphasizes translation of biochemical and structural research findings into clinically meaningful and practice-changing discoveries. His work to date has advanced the field’s understanding of: (i) the molecular mechanisms of the human skin barrier; (ii) assembly mechanisms of intermediate filaments, like keratin and vimentin, leading to patents for new cytoskeleton-targeted therapeutics; (iii) the biochemical basis for antibiotic activity and resistance in Cutibacterium acnes and acne vulgaris; (iv) the structure-function relationships of anti-IL23 psoriasis biologics and how that impacts clinical efficacy; (v) the structure-function relationships of multiple dermatologic therapeutics, including atopic dermatitis biologics, Janus kinase inhibitors, PDE4 inhibitors, and more. Chris’ research has pioneered a new focus in dermatology on fundamental biochemistry and structural biology, particularly around connecting the atomic resolution mechanisms of action of a therapeutic to its clinical performance and safety. Complementing his basic science research, Chris has and continues to lead multiple dermatology clinical trials at the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation.
Andrei Metelitsa, MD, FRCPC is a board-certified dermatologist in both Canada and United States. He is Co-Director of the Institute for Skin Advancement in Calgary, Alberta and serves as a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Calgary. He completed his dermatology training at the University of Alberta, followed by 1 year fellowship training in Lasers and Cosmetic Surgery with SkinCare Physicians in Boston, under the direction of world-renowned faculty from Harvard University and Yale University.
Dr. Metelitsa is an author of a dermatology book, as well as more than 40 book chapters and articles. His major cosmetic interests include laser surgery, non-surgical fat reduction and facial rejuvenation. He is also an avid skin cancer researcher, with a particular interest on epidemiology in Canada. Dr. Metelitsa has received more than 35 academic, research, leadership and volunteer awards throughout his career.