Quality of life assessment in psoriasis patients

Psoriasis is a disease with profound impact on the psychological and social aspect of the patient, particularly because of its visibility. Assessment of psoriasis severity requires a more holistic approach which encompasses both clinical and psychological measures and not merely the clinical severity assessment in isolation. This study has highlighted the importance of adopting a multidimensional assessment of quality of life in psoriasis. The findings of this study may also have important implications in measurement of efficacy of dermatologic therapy and in adjunctive stress management approaches in the clinical management of psoriasis. This study concludes that, psoriasis has a significant negative impact on physical, emotional and psychological wellbeing of the affected patients, thus causing a substantial impact on patient’s Quality of life. In view of this, it is very important to evaluate quality of life of psoriasis patients and also screen the patients for associated psychiatric co-morbid conditions like anxiety and depression, before making therapeutic decision