Socioeconomic and sociocultural determinants of psychological distress and quality of life among patients with psoriasis in a selected multi-ethnic Malaysian population

Abstract

Patients with psoriasis may have increased risk of psychological comorbidities. This cross-sectional study aimed at determining associations between sociocultural and socioeconomic factors with the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS) scores and the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) scores. Adult patients with psoriasis were recruited from a Dermatology outpatient clinic via convenience sampling. Interviews were conducted regarding socio-demographic factors and willing subjects were requested to complete the DASS and DLQI questionnaires. The Pearson χ test, Fisher's exact test and multivariate logistic regression were used for statistical analysis to determine independent predictors of depression, anxiety, stress and severe impairment of quality of life. Unadjusted analysis revealed that depression was associated with Indian ethnicity (p = .041) and severe impairment of quality of life was associated with Indian ethnicity (p = .032), higher education (p = .013), higher income (p = .042), and employment status (p = .014). Multivariate analysis revealed that Indian ethnicity was a predictor of depression (p = .024). For stress, tertiary level of education (p = .020) was an independent risk factor while a higher monthly income was a protective factor (p = .042). The ethnic Indians and Malays were significantly more likely than the ethnic Chinese to suffer reduced quality of life (p = .001 and p = .006 respectively) and subjects with tertiary education were more likely to have severe impairment of quality of life (p = .002). Our study was unique in determining sociocultural influences on psychological complications of psoriasis in a South East Asian population. This has provided invaluable insight into factors predictive of adverse effects of psoriasis on psychological distress and quality of life in our patient population. Future studies should devise interventions to specifically target at risk groups in the development of strategies to reduce morbidity associated with psoriasis.

Acceptance of Illness, Satisfaction with Life, Sense of Stigmatization, and Quality of Life among People with Psoriasis: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…In a study of Greek people with psoriasis, the mean DLQI score was 12.61 pts [37]. Kwan et al [38] reported a mean DLQI score of 6 pts. In their study, the DLQI scores for 31% of respondents corresponded to a severe deterioration of quality of life.…”

<p>Patient-Reported Disease Severity and Quality of Life Among Arabic Psoriatic Patients: A Cross-Sectional Survey</p>

“…The literature reported different quality of life scores for different populations. 23 – 25 Cultural background of patients may explain these findings. Within the Arabic countries, a study from Kuwait reported impaired sexual activities in one-third of the patients.…”

Electronic cigarette use and psychological distress in the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander adults compared with other racial/ethnic groups: Data from the National Health Interview Survey, 2014

“…Sex; age (18–24, 25–34, 35–44, 45–54, 55–64, and 65 years and older); federal poverty level (<100%, ≥100%); education (<high school, high school/graduate‐equivalent degree, >high school); employment status (“Had job last week” and “No job last week, had job past 12 months” recoded as Employed/recently employed; “No job last week, “No job past 12 months” and “Never worked” recoded as Unemployed); and marital status (“Never married,” “Divorced or separated,” and “Widowed” recoded as Single; “Married,” and “Living with a partner” recoded as Married/cohabitation) were used as control variables in regression models. These variables were identified from existing literature (Borsje et al, ; Casetta et al, ; Etter, Prokhorov, & Perneger, ; Gadalla, ; Gorney & Long ; Haire‐Joshu, Morgan, & Fisher, ; Kozlowski, ; Kwan et al, ; Mickens, Ameringer, Brightman, & Leventhal, ; O'Loughlin, Dugas, O'Loughlin, Karp, & Sylvestre, ; Soneji et al, ; Tabak, Jodkowska, & Oblacinska, ; Tang, Castle, & Choong, ).…”