Health-related quality of life in health care workers with work-related skin diseases.
BACKGROUND
Occupational skin diseases (OSDs) are common among health care workers (HCWs). Little is known about how OSD impacts on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in HCWs with suspected OSD and associated factors.


OBJECTIVE
To describe HRQoL in 278 HCWs with suspected OSD, compare data with the general and populations with skin diseases and analyse HRQoL's associations with clinical and demographic variables.


METHODS
HCWs with suspected OSD completed a generic (SF-36) and specific (Skindex-29) instrument.


RESULTS
Seven of 8 SF-36 dimensions were significantly lower in HCWs than the general population. Compared with norms for patients with skin disease and cleaning and kitchen employees (CKEs) with suspected OSD, physical functioning (PF) and general health perception were less impaired in HCWs. Skindex-29 scores were similar to CKEs' while they appeared better than patients' norms. Multivariate analysis found severity unrelated to SF-36, apart from pain but associated with all Skindex-29 scales.


CONCLUSIONS
Although HCWs with suspected OSD display considerable HRQoL impairments, (general) PF and general health perception appear less affected than expected. Severity appears to affect specific and to a lesser extent general HRQoL. Clinical and demographic variables contributed moderately to the prediction of specific and little to the prediction of general HRQoL.
University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany. Uwe.Matterne@med.uni-heidelberg.de
Uwe
U
Matterne
Christian Joachim
CJ
Apfelbacher
Stefanie
S
Soder
Thomas Ludwig
TL
Diepgen
Elke
E
Weisshaar
D000328:Adult; D003877:Dermatitis, Contact / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors