Health-related quality of life in adolescents with psoriasis: an interview-based study

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis is a common skin disease affecting the physical, psychological and social well-being of patients and their families. Most research so far has been limited to adults, and little is known about the qualitative experiences of young people with psoriasis.

OBJECTIVES: To provide an in-depth understanding of the impact of psoriasis on adolescents' health-related quality of life (HRQoL).

METHODS: Patients and their parents were recruited from a dermatology outpatient clinic, the Danish National Birth Cohort and the Danish Psoriasis Association. Thirty-six semistructured interviews were conducted with adolescents with psoriasis aged 12-17 years (n = 18), their parents (n = 14) and health professionals working with psoriasis (n = 4). Interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive thematic analysis.

RESULTS: The participants reported psoriasis-related HRQoL challenges within six main themes: physical symptoms, feeling different, psoriasis-related worry about the future, increased attention, attempts to conceal skin, and treatment-related frustrations and worry. Taken together, a broad range of the reported difficulties appeared to arise from appearance-related concerns. The impact of psoriasis and its treatment on the adolescents' daily lives varied considerably.

CONCLUSIONS: This first in-depth, qualitative study of HRQoL in adolescents with psoriasis provides a conceptual framework for understanding the impact of psoriasis and its treatment on the physical, psychological and social aspects of their daily lives.