According to the article, psoriasis is a common, chronic skin disorder that produces significant illness and can significantly effect quality of life. There are many treatment options for psoriasis ranging from simple topical medication to oral therapy with potentially toxic drugs, but there is no cure. In most patients, the need for treatment is lifelong. "Psoriasis, like many other similar [skin disorders], tends to be more emotionally than physically debilitating for patients. The effect of psoriasis on a patient is multidimensional, including the physical, social, and psychological health of the person, and is based largely on the patient's view of his or her condition," the article states.

Sameh Said Zaghloul, M.B.B.C.H., D.D.Sc., M.Sc., M.D., of The General Infirmary at Leeds, England, and colleagues evaluated compliance with topical and oral therapies in patients with psoriasis and identified factors affecting compliance among 201 patients (average age 45 years; range, 20-65 years) with psoriasis.

Patients completed a brief medical and social history and answered questions about their treatment compliance and their quality of life as related to their psoriasis at the beginning of the study. Patients were reevaluated three months later, and their actual treatment use was compared with the expected use.

The researchers found that on average, medication compliance was 60.6 percent. Women had a significantly higher medication adherence rate (77.9 percent, n=112) than men (38.8 percent, n=89). For single people, adherence was 44.2 percent (n=104), for married persons it was 78.2 percent (n=97), for employed people, it was 68.9 percent (n=134), and for unemployed people, it was 43.9 percent
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Contact: Sameh Said Zaghloul
samehzaghloul@yahoo.co.uk
JAMA and Archives Journals
19-Apr-2004