Association of atopic dermatitis with depressive symptoms and suicidal behaviors among adolescents in Korea: the 2013 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Survey

Abstract

BackgroundAtopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic skin disease which has been known to negatively influence the mental health of patients. However, only a few studies have explored the prevalence of psychiatric problems among AD patients, particularly among adolescents. In this study, we aimed to assess the association of AD with depressive symptoms and suicidal behaviors among adolescents by analyzing data from the 2013 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Survey, a nationwide web-based survey.MethodsData from 72,435 adolescent middle and high school students in Korea were analyzed. Students self-reported AD diagnosed by a doctor and yes-or-no answers to questions about depressive symptoms and suicide ideation, suicide planning, and suicide attempts were analyzed. Relationships between AD and depressive symptoms or suicidal behaviors were tested by logistic regression models after controlling for potential confounding factors.ResultsThe proportion of adolescents who had AD was 6.8%. The proportion of adolescents reporting depressive feelings was 31.0%, suicide ideation was 16.3%, suicide planning was 5.8%, and suicide attempts was 4.2%. Compared to adolescents without AD, adolescents with AD were significantly more likely to experience depressive feelings (odds ratio [OR]: 1.27, 95% confidence interval [Cl]: 1.19-1.36), suicide ideation (OR: 1.34, 95% Cl: 1.24-1.45), suicide planning (OR: 1.46, 95% Cl: 1.32-1.65), and suicide attempts (OR: 1.51, 95% Cl: 1.33-1.72). In the multivariate model, the relationships between AD and suicide ideation (OR: 1.26, 95% Cl:1.16-1.36), suicide planning (OR: 1.28, 95% Cl:1.14-1.44), and suicide attempt (OR: 1.29, 95% Cl:1.13-1.49) were statistically significant.ConclusionAdolescents who have AD are associated with a higher prevalence of depression symptoms and suicidal behaviors. Adolescent AD patients may need interventions from clinicians and caregivers that use a holistic approach to prevent psychological comorbidities, although further research is needed to clarify this relationship.

The familial aggregation of atopic diseases and depression or anxiety in children

“…Our effect estimates for asthma were comparable with other studies using cohorts of comparable age . In regard to the other atopic diseases, although less studied than asthma, our study contributes to the growing body of epidemiological evidence finding that eczema, food allergy and rhinitis are each associated with depression or anxiety in children.…”

Atopic dermatitis is associated with anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, but not with psychiatric hospitalization or suicide

“…Notably, a large recent Taiwanese study found that adolescents with AD had a stronger risk of anxiety than depression, whereas the risk of depression was stronger compared to anxiety in adults . Moreover, a recent study of adolescents from Korea found slightly increased risks of suicidal ideation, planning, and attempts in patients with AD . It is possible that a “psychiatric march” exists in patients with AD, where chronic pruritus, sleep disturbance, and poor self‐esteem in turn may lead to anxiety, depression, and possibly even suicide …”

Depression, anxiety and quality of life in subjects with atopic eczema in a population‐based cross‐sectional study in Germany

“…11 Eczema was also associated with social isolation in a sample of 54 adults from the United Kingdom. 12 The majority of data on mental health or psychosocial burden in AE comes from the United States and from Asian adult populations [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] ; only a few data exist from continental Europe 1, [26][27][28] and even less from Germany. Currently available data on adults with AE from Germany rely on selected cohorts of patients, 1,[28][29][30][31] including health insurance data.…”