According to the researchers of the study, managing patients with hidradenitis suppurativa holistically may help reduce the burden of their disease.
New survey results are highlighting the physical and psychological impact of hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) on patients.
The results, coming from 67 patients with the disease, revealed that these effects can lead to avoidance of certain social activities, including going out and participating in recreational activities. According to the researchers of the study, managing these patients holistically may help reduce the burden of their disease. They published their findings in Cureus last month.
“Participation in physical and social activities may improve patients’ disease severity and well-being, respectively, and lack thereof may worsen disease outcomes and contribute to feelings of isolation,” wrote the researchers. “Social anxiety may be a contributing factor to HS patients’ degree of isolation. Currently, there are limited data on HS’s effect on participation in social activities.”
The researchers analyzed data from patients with HS who completed the survey between June and September 2018. More than half of patients reported that their HS impeded on various activities, including playing sports and recreational activities (69.4%), going out socially or to a special event (66.1%), practicing their hobbies (60.0%), attending parties (54.0%), and going out in public (52.3%).
Patients also filled out the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation, which assessed their levels of social anxiety. Participants who had higher scores, indicating greater levels of social anxiety, were more likely to have greater interference with all daily activities.
Patients who had more than 1 body region affected by HS were more likely to report that it affected their social activities “a lot.” Compared with patients with 1 body region affected, these patients were significantly more likely to report their disease affecting their participation in sports and recreational activities (50.8% vs 0%), going out socially or to a special event (32.3% vs 0%), doing their hobbies (32.3% vs 0%), going to parties (33.3% vs 0%), going out in public (24.2% vs 0%), and being with family members (16.6% vs 0%).
In addition, respondents with more than 5 painful nodules were more likely to report that activities, such as participating in sports or recreational activities (59.3% vs 36.1%), going out socially or to a social event (37.9% vs 24.3%), doing hobbies (31% vs 29.7%), going to parties (37% vs 27%), going out in public (27.6% vs 18.9%), and being with family members (22.2% vs 10.8%), were negatively affected by their disease vs patients who had 5 or less painful nodules.
“Limitations of our study include a small sample size recruited from a single academic center, although our effect size was large enough to detect differences. Our nonresponse rate was high; however, the demographics of responders and nonresponders were similar,” wrote the researchers, who approached 153 patients to take the survey. “We did not assess for reasons why HS interfered with various social activities, and while we did not assess causality, interventions to reduce isolation among patients with HS may be helpful to improve their quality of life.”
Reference
Perche PO, Singh R, Senthilnathan A, Feldman SR, Pichardo RO. Hidradenitis suppurativa’s impact on social activities: an observational study. Cureus. Published online May 24, 2022. doi:10.7759/cureus.25292
CMS Medicare Final Rule: Advancing Benefits, Competition, and Consumer Protection
May 7th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with Karen Iapoce, senior director of government products and programs at ZeOmega, about the recent CMS final rule on Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage.
Listen
Examining Low-Value Cancer Care Trends Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 25th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the April 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on the rates of low-value cancer care services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Listen
Following Roe v Wade Overturn, Research Focuses on Male Contraceptives
May 6th 2024Stephanie T. Page, MD, PhD, UW Medicine Diabetes Institute, presented on ongoing research and growing interest in new male contraceptive options, such as an oral pill and a hormonal transdermal gel, at the American Urological Association 2024 Annual Meeting.
Read More
CMS Medicare Final Rule: Advancing Benefits, Competition, and Consumer Protection
May 7th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with Karen Iapoce, senior director of government products and programs at ZeOmega, about the recent CMS final rule on Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage.
Listen
Examining Low-Value Cancer Care Trends Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 25th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the April 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on the rates of low-value cancer care services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Listen
Following Roe v Wade Overturn, Research Focuses on Male Contraceptives
May 6th 2024Stephanie T. Page, MD, PhD, UW Medicine Diabetes Institute, presented on ongoing research and growing interest in new male contraceptive options, such as an oral pill and a hormonal transdermal gel, at the American Urological Association 2024 Annual Meeting.
Read More
2 Commerce Drive
Cranbury, NJ 08512