Hopelessness, Depression and Alexithymia in Young Turkish Soldiers Suffering from Alopecia areata

Abstract

Background: There are reports finding high prevalences of psychiatric disorders in patients with alopecia areata (AA), as well as reports refuting this association. The present study was designed to assess the prevalence of depression, anxiety, hopelessness, psychological distress and alexithymia in AA patients compared to a healthy control group. Method: 31 male patients who were soldiers with AA and 40 healthy soldier controls from the same milieu were assessed by the Beck Depression Inventory, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale and the Brief Symptom Inventory. Results: The patients with AA scored significantly higher than normal controls on all of the psychological measures. According to cut-off scores 58% of the patients were alexithymic, 55% were in the range of clinical depression, and 32% displayed hopelessness. AA patients displayed higher levels of psychopathology than normal controls. Conclusions: The alexithymia construct deserves further attention in patients with skin disorders, particularly in AA. State and trait alexithymia can result from deficits induced by severe and persistent stress and they have neurophysiologic causes. Alexithymic individuals who fail to cope with stress and also fail to communicate their feelings, might be more prone to develop AA. Depression, anxiety and hopelessness must be recognized and treated in AA patients for a better response to dermatological therapy.

Alexithymia in patients with alopecia areata: educational background much more important than traumatic events

“…Concerning, the secondary aim of the study, our results are in line with the results of three other controlled studies assessing the prevalence of alexithymia in patients suffering from AA compared to a healthy control group. Both Sayar et al 12 . and Cordan Yazici et al 13 .…”

“…Picardi and Pasquini 11 have demonstrated that patients with AA present higher avoidance in attachment relationships, as well as higher alexithymic characteristics, and poorer social support, when compared to controls. Also, other authors could detect more alexithymia in patients suffering from AA 12,13 …”

Psychological Distress in Hospital Staff with Self-Reported Hand Dermatitis

“…Psychological factors were recognized as being important in at least one fourth of dermatology patients [Gupta and Gupta, 2001]. This topic was extensively studied in such dermatoses as psoriasis [Suljagic et al, 2000;Devrimci-Ozguven et al, 2000], atopic dermatitis [Linnet et al, 2001], acne [Sayar et al, 2001b] and hair loss [Sayar et al, 2001a]. There are also several studies on quality of life in these patients [Williamson et al, 2001;Lange et al, 2001].…”

Psychodermatology: A comprehensive review

“…[14] Various studies have reported a high incidence of alexithymia in alopecia areata (58%), [15] psoriasis (35%), [16] chronic urticaria (50%), [17] and vitiligo (35.5%). [18] Epigenetics is a new concept in the arena of psychiatry that suggests novel pathophysiology and entirely new approach to prevention and treatment of various psychosomatic disorders.…”