Publication:

Quality of life in psoriasis: a clinical study

Background Psoriasis is a common inflammatory dermatosis with a chronic course that can have a significant detrimental effect on the quality of life (QoL) of those suffering from it. We conducted this study to evaluate the effect of psoriasis on QoL and to assess the impact of demographic factors and disease severity on QoL.

Methods Ninety patients attending the Dermatology OPD at Himalayan Institute of Medical Sciences were included in the study. Their demographic details and history were recorded, followed by a physical examination including assessment of disease severity. DLQI was used to measure QoL. T-test and ANOVA were used to study the effect of demographic factors and disease severity on QoL. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results Out of 90 patients, 61(67.78%) were males and 29 (32.22%) were females. The mean DLQI score was 15.00±4.93. QoL was impacted by age, sex, marital status and disease severity, whereas place of residence and educational status had no correlation with DLQI scores.

Conclusions There is a marked negative impact on QoL of psoriasis sufferers; hence it becomes important to take the psycho-social aspect of the disease into consideration during treatment.