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. 2025 Jan 7;317(1):196.
doi: 10.1007/s00403-024-03725-3.

Do patients with severe acne vulgaris prefer the evening chronotype more? A case-control study

Emre Zekey  1 , Özlem Çiçek Zekey  2
Affiliations

Do patients with severe acne vulgaris prefer the evening chronotype more? A case-control study

Emre Zekey et al. Arch Dermatol Res. .

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate sleep quality, chronotype preferences, anxiety, and depression levels in patients diagnosed with acne vulgaris and compare them with healthy controls. This cross-sectional case-control study included 92 patients with acne vulgaris and 59 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Acne severity was assessed using the Global Acne Grading System (GAGS); sleep quality using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI); chronotype preferences using the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ); and anxiety and depression levels using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). There were no significant differences in the MEQ, BDI, or BAI scores between the two groups. The PSQI score was significantly higher in the patient group than that in the control group. Acne severity was negatively correlated with the MEQ scores and positively correlated with the PSQI scores. When the patient group was divided into three subgroups according to acne severity (mild, moderate, and severe), significant differences in MEQ and BAI scores were observed between the groups. According to the post-hoc analysis, the severe acne group had higher BAI scores, while the mild acne group had higher MEQ scores. It would be more appropriate to be aware of the potential psychiatric comorbidities of acne vulgaris and adopt a multidisciplinary approach to the treatment and management process.

Keywords: Acne; Anxiety; Chronotype; Depression; Sleep.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethical approval: All procedures were performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Approval for the study was obtained from the Ethics Committee of Sivas Cumhuriyet University on 16.11.2023 with decision number 2023-11/05. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

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