The psychosocial impact of psoriasis: physical severity, quality of life, and stigmatization

Abstract

Men (N=58) and women (N=43) living with psoriasis completed questionnaires assessing quality of life and feelings of stigmatization. Physician ratings of disease severity were used in conjunction with these variables to account for psychosocial impact. Results showed that ratings of severity were poor predictors of quality of life and stigmatization. Demographic variables (e.g., sex and education) were also generally poor predictors of psychosocial outcome. It is concluded that attempts to understand the psychological impact of psoriasis in terms of current measures of disease severity and demographic characteristics will be limited.