HS vs Psoriasis: Which is More Detrimental to Quality of Life?

Patients with hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) have a higher health-related quality of life (HRQOL) burden than patients with psoriasis, according to the results of a recent study.

No previous study has compared the effects of psoriasis and HS on quality of life.
___________________________________________________________________________

For their study, researchers used the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) for pain, Total Work Productivity Impairment, Dermatology Life Quality Index, EuroQOL 5D VAS, and Short Form-36 Health Survey to measure HRQOL in patients with moderate-to-severe manifestations of HS and psoriasis.

Compared with psoriasis patients, those with HS reported higher scores for VAS-pain (54.3 vs 36.1), Dermatology Life Quality Index (15.3 vs 11.3), EuroQOL 5D VAS (58.8 vs 50.8), and Total Work Productivity Impairment (35.4 vs 18.2), and reported lower scores for Short Form-36 Health Survey scores (physical, 39.6 vs 49.0; mental, 41.5 vs 47.5).

“Patients with HS have a higher HRQoL burden than patients with psoriasis. This study clearly documents the needs of patients with HS and the potential impact of medical, scientific, and societal consensus for the development of more effective HS treatments,” the researchers concluded.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Hamzavi IH, Sundaram M, Nicholson C, et al. Uncovering burden disparity: A comparative analysis of the impact of moderate-to-severe psoriasis and hidradenitis suppurativa [published online September 13, 2017]. J Am Acad Dermatol. Doi: doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2017.07.027.