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Effects of time and recall of patch test results on quality of life ( QoL ) after testing. Cross‐sectional study analyzing QoL in hand eczema patients 1, 5 and 10 years after patch testing
Author(s) -
Jamil Wasim N.,
Lindberg Magnus
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
contact dermatitis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.524
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1600-0536
pISSN - 0105-1873
DOI - 10.1111/cod.12734
Subject(s) - medicine , recall , dermatology life quality index , quality of life (healthcare) , patch test , allergy , patch testing , logistic regression , cross sectional study , test (biology) , contact dermatitis , immunology , psychology , pathology , disease , nursing , cognitive psychology , biology , paleontology
Summary Background Patch testing can improve health‐related quality of life ( HRQOL ). Objectives To study the impact on HRQOL of elapsed time after patch testing (1–10 years), and how the outcome of testing and patients' recall affects HRQOL . Patients/materials/methods The D ermatology L ife Q uality I ndex ( DLQI ) questionnaire was sent to all patients (aged 18–65 years) who were patch tested for suspected contact allergy in 2009, 2005 and 2000 at the D epartment of D ermatology in Ö rebro. Results The response rate was 51% (n = 256). The DLQI score was significantly lower at 10 years after patch testing (mean DLQI = 5.5) than at 1 year (mean DLQI = 7.7). Work was the most impaired aspect. A binary logistic model showed that only time (10 years after testing) was associated with no effect, a light effect or a moderate effect ( DLQI < 10) on HRQOL . No such association was seen for patients with negative or positive test results concerning full recall, partial recall or no recall of diagnosed allergens. Conclusions Although there was an improvement in HRQOL over time, the work aspect remained a major problem. The improvement was not affected by the outcome of testing and patients' recall of test results.