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. 2022 Dec;39(6):1035-1039.
doi: 10.5114/ada.2021.112765. Epub 2022 Mar 27.

Prevalence and quality of life of facial acne: a cross-sectional study in high school students in Poland

Marta Szepietowska  1 , Alicja Dąbrowska  1 , Bernadetta Nowak  1 , Katarzyna Skinderowicz  1 , Bartosz Wilczyński  1 , Piotr K Krajewski  2 , Alina Jankowska-Konsur  2
Affiliations

Prevalence and quality of life of facial acne: a cross-sectional study in high school students in Poland

Marta Szepietowska et al. Postepy Dermatol Alergol. 2022 Dec.

Abstract

Introduction: Acne is a frequent chronic inflammatory disease, which affects most commonly adolescents. It might have a negative effect on patients' well-being.

Aim: To appraise the prevalence of facial acne among adolescents and to assess how acne of different clinical severity influences quality of life in this age group.

Material and method: This cross-sectional study was conducted on a representative sample of individuals aged 15-19 years in high schools in Poland. A total of 730 students were included in the final analysis. Standardized photographs according to the Investigator's Global Assessment (IGA) were used for self-assessment of both the presence and severity of facial acne. The Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) was employed to evaluate subjects' quality of life (QoL) impairment.

Results: Facial acne was found in 547 (74.9%) respondents with no significant difference in acne prevalence among females (75.1%) and males (74.6%). The vast majority of acne individuals (90.9%) suffered from minimal and mild acne, moderate acne was reported by 7.3% and severe one by 1.8% of acne students. Acne had a small effect on QoL (DLQI mean score of 2.8 ±3.6 points); females had significantly more decreased QoL than males (3.17 ±3.74 and 1.76 ±2.69 points, respectively). QoL impairment positively correlated with the clinical severity of facial acne.

Conclusions: Facial acne is a common health problem in adolescents. Although it is not very severe in the majority of subjects it significantly decreases their QoL. Therefore, acne should be treated as a serious skin condition requiring a holistic approach to the patients.

Keywords: acne; adolescents; prevalence; quality of life; severity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Acne effect on the QoL impairment
Figure 2
Figure 2
Correlation between QoL impairment and acne severity
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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