Disease burden and treatment needs of patients with psoriasis in sexually-sensitive and visible body areas: results from a large-scale survey in routine care.

Psoriasis may cause considerable disease burden. The involvement of sexually-sensitive/visible body areas has been associated with decreased quality of life (QoL), more depressive symptoms and stigmatisation experiences. To characterise the topical distribution of psoriasis in sexually-sensitive and visible areas, to examine its impact on QoL and to determine which specific patient needs should be addressed in routine care. Patients with psoriasis vulgaris were recruited within a cross-sectional nationwide survey, involving 157 randomly assigned German dermatology practices/clinics. The main outcome measures were the EuroQoL visual analogue scale (EQ VAS), the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), the Patient Needs Questionnaire (PNQ) and a grid scheme for topical distribution of psoriasis. The sample included 2,009 patients (43.7% female; 21.8% ≥ 65 years; 64.2% with lesions in sexually-sensitive areas and 86.2% with lesions in visible areas). Patients with concomitant involvement of sexually-sensitive and visible areas presented increased DLQI impairments relative to patients with no involvement of sexually-sensitive or visible areas (F