title: Prevalence of pigmentary disorders and their impact on quality of life: a prospective cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pigmentary disorders are commonly seen in dermatology practice and can have a negative psychosocial impact on patients.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aims to examine the prevalence of pigmentary disorders and their level of psychological and physical impact on patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective cohort study involved a sample of 140 patients undergoing skin exams at a private dermatology practice in North Carolina. Patient demographics and pigmentary diagnoses were obtained, and participants were asked to fill out a skin discoloration impact evaluation questionnaire. Descriptive and frequency analyses were performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Around 80% of the participants were diagnosed with one or more pigmentary disorders. About 47.3% of patients admitted of feeling self-conscious about their skin to some degree, 21.8% felt others focused on their skin, 32.7% felt unattractive because of their skin, 32.7% put effort into hiding pigment changes, and 23.6% felt their skin affected their activities. A limitation was the lack of diversity in the population studied (gender and skin type).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Pigmentary disorders such as melasma, vitiligo, and lentigo pose significant negative impact on a person's health-related quality of life. Hence, there is a need for effective treatments of pigmentary disorders based on their prevalence and effect on quality of life. Healthcare providers should consider the impact of pigmentary disorders on health-related quality of life and educate patients on possible treatments.
authors.affiliation: Center for Dermatology Research, Department of Dermatology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1071, USA.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: Manjiri
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pawaskar
authors.forename: Sarah L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: Rajesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Balkrishnan
authors.forename: Steven R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Feldman
mesh_terms: D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017495:Hyperpigmentation / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D007911:Lentigo / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D008548:Melanosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D009657:North Carolina / Q000453:epidemiology; D010859:Pigmentation Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D012494:Sampling Studies; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014820:Vitiligo / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology