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Itch and Mental Health in Dermatological Patients across Europe : A Cross-Sectional Study in 13 Countries

Dalgard, Florence J. LU ; Svensson, Åke LU ; Halvorsen, Jon Anders ; Gieler, Uwe ; Schut, Christina ; Tomas-Aragones, Lucia ; Lien, Lars ; Poot, Francoise ; Jemec, Gregor B.E. and Misery, Laurent , et al. (2020) In Journal of Investigative Dermatology 140(3). p.568-573
Abstract

Itch is a highly prevalent and multidimensional symptom. We aimed to analyze the association between itch and mental health in dermatological patients. This multicenter study is observational and cross-sectional and was conducted in dermatological clinics across 13 European countries. A total of 3,530 patients and 1,094 healthy controls were included. Patients were examined clinically. Outcome measures were itch (presence, chronicity, and intensity), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, EQ-5D visual analogue scale, sociodemographics, suicidal ideation, and stress (negative life events and economic difficulties). Ethical approval was obtained. Results showed significant association between the presence of itch in patients and... (More)

Itch is a highly prevalent and multidimensional symptom. We aimed to analyze the association between itch and mental health in dermatological patients. This multicenter study is observational and cross-sectional and was conducted in dermatological clinics across 13 European countries. A total of 3,530 patients and 1,094 healthy controls were included. Patients were examined clinically. Outcome measures were itch (presence, chronicity, and intensity), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, EQ-5D visual analogue scale, sociodemographics, suicidal ideation, and stress (negative life events and economic difficulties). Ethical approval was obtained. Results showed significant association between the presence of itch in patients and clinical depression (odds ratio, 1.53; 95% confidence interval, 1.15–2.02), suicidal ideation (odds ratio, 1.27; 95% confidence interval, 1.01–1.60), and economic difficulties (odds ratio, 1.24; 95% confidence interval, 1.10–1.50). The mean score of reported generic health status assessed by the EQ-5D visual analogue scale was 65.9 (standard deviation = 20.1) in patients with itch, compared with 74.7 (standard deviation = 18.0) in patients without itch (P < 0.001) and 74.9 (standard deviation = 15.7) in controls with itch compared with 82.9 (standard deviation = 15.6) in controls without itch (P < 0.001). Itch contributes substantially to the psychological disease burden in dermatological patients, and the management of patients should include access to multidisciplinary care.

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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Journal of Investigative Dermatology
volume
140
issue
3
pages
6 pages
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • pmid:31491369
  • scopus:85074333528
ISSN
0022-202X
DOI
10.1016/j.jid.2019.05.034
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
0aaff7f8-2858-4529-8bff-f277f3d53823
date added to LUP
2020-12-18 12:23:57
date last changed
2024-04-17 21:22:29
@article{0aaff7f8-2858-4529-8bff-f277f3d53823,
  abstract     = {{<p>Itch is a highly prevalent and multidimensional symptom. We aimed to analyze the association between itch and mental health in dermatological patients. This multicenter study is observational and cross-sectional and was conducted in dermatological clinics across 13 European countries. A total of 3,530 patients and 1,094 healthy controls were included. Patients were examined clinically. Outcome measures were itch (presence, chronicity, and intensity), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, EQ-5D visual analogue scale, sociodemographics, suicidal ideation, and stress (negative life events and economic difficulties). Ethical approval was obtained. Results showed significant association between the presence of itch in patients and clinical depression (odds ratio, 1.53; 95% confidence interval, 1.15–2.02), suicidal ideation (odds ratio, 1.27; 95% confidence interval, 1.01–1.60), and economic difficulties (odds ratio, 1.24; 95% confidence interval, 1.10–1.50). The mean score of reported generic health status assessed by the EQ-5D visual analogue scale was 65.9 (standard deviation = 20.1) in patients with itch, compared with 74.7 (standard deviation = 18.0) in patients without itch (P &lt; 0.001) and 74.9 (standard deviation = 15.7) in controls with itch compared with 82.9 (standard deviation = 15.6) in controls without itch (P &lt; 0.001). Itch contributes substantially to the psychological disease burden in dermatological patients, and the management of patients should include access to multidisciplinary care.</p>}},
  author       = {{Dalgard, Florence J. and Svensson, Åke and Halvorsen, Jon Anders and Gieler, Uwe and Schut, Christina and Tomas-Aragones, Lucia and Lien, Lars and Poot, Francoise and Jemec, Gregor B.E. and Misery, Laurent and Szabo, Csanad and Linder, Dennis and Sampogna, Francesca and Koulil, Saskia Spillekom van and Balieva, Flora and Szepietowski, Jacek C. and Lvov, Andrey and Marron, Servando E. and Altunay, Ilknur K. and Finlay, Andrew Y. and Salek, Sam and Kupfer, Jörg}},
  issn         = {{0022-202X}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{3}},
  pages        = {{568--573}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Journal of Investigative Dermatology}},
  title        = {{Itch and Mental Health in Dermatological Patients across Europe : A Cross-Sectional Study in 13 Countries}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jid.2019.05.034}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.jid.2019.05.034}},
  volume       = {{140}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}