Abdul-Aziz Al Hussain
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz University Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Title: Prevalence of anxiety symptoms in psoriasis patients in Riyadh hospitals
Biography
Biography: Abdul-Aziz Al Hussain
Abstract
Background: Psoriasis is associated with high levels of psychological distress and considerable life impact. The impact of psoriasis, beyond the skin, is often not recognized and under-treated.
Objectives: To assess the prevalence of anxiety in patients diagnosed with psoriasis according to standard criteria.
Methods: The study was a cross-sectional survey conducted in three hospitals in Riyadh region over a period of 6 months from October 2013 to March 2014, using a self-administered questionnaire. The general part of the questionnaire is composed of 10 questions that covered the demographic, behavioral and clinical characteristics. Anxiety was assessed using the 14-items Hamilton Anxiety Scale. The severity of anxiety symptoms was categorized into mild (<17), moderate (18-24) and severe (25-30) anxiety. Out of 250 distributed questionnaire, 219 responded (response rate of 87.6%).
Result: The age of the patients ranged between 10 and 60 years, 54.8% were females and 53.4% were not-married. Out of 219 examined patients, 150 (68.5%) were found to have mild anxiety, 51 (23.3%) with moderate anxiety, 18 (8.2%) with sever anxiety. Severe anxiety was considerably seen more among those who were between 20 and 39 years (15.2%) compared to those <20 years (0%) and those between 40 and 60 years (5%). Severe anxiety was significantly higher among patients with longer duration of the illness. There was no significant association between the psoriasis severity and the severity of anxiety symptoms.
Conclusions: The current study reported high prevalence of anxiety symptoms among patients with confirmed psoriasis in Riyadh Hospitals, Saudi Arabia.