Psoriasis: Age related diagnosis and the impact on quality of life

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disorder with proliferative dermatological and systemic manifestations involving multiple organs. Its etiology and pathogenesis is closely related with genetic and environmental factors. The current study was designed to assess the relationship of age at the diagnosis of psoriasis and its impact on their quality of life. The findings thus obtained might help to take appropriate therapeutic and psychological measures together with patients' counselling to minimize any adverse consequences. Aim: To determine the age of diagnosis of psoriasis and its impact on the quality of life with age quartiles in psoriasis patients. Setting: This cross sectional study was carried out in Dermatology out patients department (OPD) affiliated with Liaquat University Hospital (LUH), Hyderabad from December 2019 to June 2020. Methodology: Total 141 diagnosed cases of psoriasis vulgaris were included in the study. The final data in the form of DLQI SCORE, PASI SCORE in each quartile of age of all patients was collected and findings were noted down in the predesigned proforma. Results: The average age of the patients included in the study was 37.53 +/- 12.12 years. There were 103 (73%) males and 38 females (27%) who consented to be the part of the study. Quality of life among 17 (12.06%) patients had little impact, 42 (29.79%) had moderate effect, 77 (54.61%) patients had severe effect and 5 (3.55%) had extreme effect. There is significant effect with respect to age quartiles at diagnosis of psoriasis (p=0.005). Significant effect on quality of life was observed in 1st and 2nd quartile while moderate effect appeared to impact the patients in 3rd quartile of age. Conclusion: Psoriasis is more than just a skin disorder and has a very large effect on patients' quality of life with noticeable effects having potential to impact their personalities, daily routine activities and even relationships with people around them. Depending upon the severity of the disorder, it could affect quality of life without any discrimination of age, gender, duration and married life of patients. The more it is on the exposed parts, the more it affects their quality of life.