Objective: The present study aims to investigate the effects of vitiligo on quality of life (QoL),
self-esteem (SE), and body image (BI).
Patients and Methods: This study included 64 patients diagnosed with vitiligo, and 87 ageand
sex-matched control subjects. Sociodemographic characteristics of the participants were
collected and hypopigmented lesion involvement regions were recorded to identify clinical
severity of vitiligo. The Dermatology Quality of Life Index (DQoLI), Body Image Scale (BIS), and
Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) were completed.
Results: Comparison of DQoLI, SE, and BI between vitiligo and control groups demonstrated
that vitiligo patients had a statistically significantly lower QoL (P<0.01), a lower SE (P<0.01), and
a worse BI (P<0.01). Localization of lesions at one or multiple sites did not show a statistically
significant impact on DQoLI, SE, or BI (P>0.05). The DQoLI, BIS, and RSES scores and the levels
of QoL, SE, and BI were similar between the patients with vitiligo for ≤5 and >5 years (P>0.05).
Conclusion: Vitiligo can negatively affect the QoL, SE, and BI of patients, thereby, resulting in
psychosocial problems. It can be concluded that the unfavorable skin appearance of the disease
is not only a factor affecting the patients’ QoL, SE, and BI; however, its relation with
neurobiological mechanisms should be further investigated. This study emphasizes that body
image and self-esteem is affected independently of the location of vitiligo lesions, and
consequently neurobiological mechanisms may be important.
Konular | Sağlık Kurumları Yönetimi |
---|---|
Bölüm | Araştırma Yazısı |
Yazarlar | |
Yayımlanma Tarihi | 30 Haziran 2017 |
Yayımlandığı Sayı | Yıl 2017 Cilt: 8 Sayı: 2 |