title: Psychiatric morbidity in pemphigus and psoriasis: a comparative study from India.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was designed to examine the prevalence of psychiatric morbidity and its psychosocial and psychopathological correlates in patients with pemphigus in comparison to those with psoriasis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with pemphigus (n=50), group matched for demography, with those with psoriasis (n=30), and healthy controls (n=30), were subjected to cross-sectional assessment for duration, severity, and impact of dermatological disorder, attitude to appearance, social support, coping strategies, disability, quality of life, and psychiatric morbidity and diagnosis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The pemphigus group recorded the psychiatric morbidity rates at 40% by GHQ-12 and 26% by ICD-10; the ICD-10 diagnoses included adjustment disorder (16%), depressive episode (8%), and acute and transient psychosis (2%). This comorbidity was not very different from that of the psoriasis group at 46.7% by GHQ-12 and 36.7% by ICD-10; the ICD-10 diagnoses including adjustment disorder (13.3%), depressive episode (10.0%), alcohol dependence (6.6%), paranoid schizophrenia (3.3%), and delusional disorder plus severe depressive episode with psychotic symptoms (3.3%). The pemphigus group scored higher on disability, despite the dermatological severity and psychosocial profile being similar. Dermatological severity, psychopathology, and certain psychosocial variables were correlated in the pemphigus group, as also in the psoriasis group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The high psychiatric and psychosocial morbidity in pemphigus and other chronic and severe dermatologic disorders indicates a need for more studies on the psychosocial aspect of these disorders and for sensitization by the dealing physicians with this aspect.
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education & Research, Chandigarh, India. vinpsy@yahoo.com
authors: Vineet
authors: V
authors: Kumar
authors: Surendra Kumar
authors: SK
authors: Mattoo
authors: Sanjeev
authors: S
authors: Handa
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010392:Pemphigus / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011565:Psoriasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult