Impact of Vitiligo on Life Quality of Patients: Assessment of Currently Available Tools

Abstract

Background: How different tools for evaluating health-related quality of life (QoL) reflect the burden of vitiligo has rarely been compared. In this study, we aim to evaluate the impact of vitiligo on QoL using currently available tools. Methods: A single-center, cross-sectional study of vitiligo patients was performed. QoL was evaluated using the dermatology life quality index (DLQI), short form-36 (SF-36), and willingness to pay (WTP). As the original DLQI cutoff score (>10) indicating aginificantly impated QoL was found to underestimate QoL, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was use to determine a new cutoff point discriminating vitiligo patients with positive mental stress (SF-36 mental health ≤ 52). Results: Of the 143 patients enrolled, 24.5% were identified having significant mental stress by SF-36 mental health domain score ≤ 52 while there were only 13.3% patients with significantly hampered QoL indicated by DLQI >10. Using ROC analysis, DLQI ≥ 7 was found to be a more appropriate DLQI cutoff value for identifying mental stress in vitiligo patients. Additionally, the median WTP for treating vitiligo was comparable to other inflammatory skin diseases. Conclusions: There exist discrepancies in the outcomes identifying significant disease burden of vitiligo using DLQI and SF-36, making the current DLQI cutoff score (>10) for identifying significantly affected QoL inappropriate for these patients.