Abstract
Background: Although vitiligo does not cause direct physical impairment or life-threatening conditions, it can produce significant psychosocial problems. Nevertheless, its effect on the psychosocial well-being of patients has been neglected. Objective: This study compared quality of life (QOL) in patients with vitiligo and in healthy controls, and assessed the impact of vitiligo on the patients' QOL using Skindex-29. Methods: This study recruited 105 vitiligo patients and 105 healthy controls, and the QOL scores of the groups were compared using Skindex-29. Statistical analyses were performed to examine the relationship between QOL and clinical characteristics. Results: The total Skindex-29, emotion, and function scores, but not the symptom scores, were significantly higher in the vitiligo group than in the healthy controls. QOL, including symptom, function, and emotion scores, was significantly impaired in women, the elderly, married patients, and patients with a longer duration of disease, greater area of vitiligo, and lesions appearing on the exposed sites. But, symptom scores generally did not differ significantly. All aspects of QOL were impaired in patients with a previous treatment history, longer duration of treatment, and relatively low levels of satisfaction with treatment. Conclusion: Vitiligo can impair a patient's QOL. Therefore, it is important for the dermatologist to recognize and manage psychological problems to improve the QOL of vitiligo patients. (Korean J Dermatol 2008;46(7):874∼880)