Impact of psoriasis on patients' work and productivity: a retrospective, matched case-control analysis.
BACKGROUND
Psoriasis negatively impacts patient quality of life; however, the impact on work and productivity is not well known.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the impact of psoriasis on work and productivity using data from the National Health and Wellness Survey (NHWS).


METHODS
Data collected from 40 730 adults who completed the NHWS between 1 May and 30 June 2004, of whom 1127 had psoriasis, were analyzed. Psoriasis patients and a matched cohort of non-psoriasis patients were identified to assess the impact of psoriasis on work and productivity.


RESULTS
Psoriasis patients were more likely to have missed work for health-related reasons (p < 0.05), had significantly more health-related work productivity impairment (p < 0.001), more overall work impairment (p < 0.001), and more impairment in activity other than work (p < 0.001) than non-psoriasis patients.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this large-scale national survey suggest that psoriasis has a significant negative impact on overall work productivity.
Wu
Ying
Y
Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Services, LLC, Malvern, Pennsylvania 19355, USA. YWu3@its.jnj.com
Mills
Douglas
D
Bala
Mohan
M
D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003625:Data Collection; D004526:Efficiency; D004651:Employment; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011565:Psoriasis / Q000523:psychology*; D011788:Quality of Life; D014937:Work