The Relationship Between Dermatologist- and Patient-Reported Acne Severity Measures and Treatment Recommendations

Jerry Tan; Marc P Frey; Sanja Knezevic; Yves Poulin; Charles W Lynde; Wayne P Gulliver; Aditya K Gupta; Rolf J Sebaldt; David R Thomas; Sheetal Sapra

doi:10.1177/1203475415576464

The Relationship Between Dermatologist- and Patient-Reported Acne Severity Measures and Treatment Recommendations

J Cutan Med Surg. 2015 Sep-Oct;19(5):464-9. doi: 10.1177/1203475415576464. Epub 2015 Mar 11.

Authors

Jerry Tan¹, Marc P Frey², Sanja Knezevic³, Yves Poulin⁴, Charles W Lynde⁵, Wayne P Gulliver⁶, Aditya K Gupta⁷, Rolf J Sebaldt⁸, David R Thomas⁹, Sheetal Sapra¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medicine, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada jerrytan@bellnet.ca.
² Department of Psychology, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON, Canada.
³ Department of Medicine, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada.
⁴ Hôpital Hôtel-Dieu de Québec and Centre de Recherche Dermatologique du Québec métropolitain, Quebec City, QC, Canada.
⁵ Lynde Dermatology, Markham, ON, Canada.
⁶ Faculty of Medicine, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NF, Canada.
⁷ Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁸ Department of Medicine and Department of Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
⁹ Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
¹⁰ Institute of Cosmetic and Laser Surgery, Oakville, ON, Canada.

PMID: 25775621
DOI: 10.1177/1203475415576464

Abstract

Background: Acne treatment recommendations for individual patients may be derived from multiple factors including dermatologist- and patient-reported constructs.

Objectives: To evaluate the effects of dermatologist- and patient-reported measures on acne treatment recommendations by dermatologists.

Methods: An observational cross-sectional survey of acne patients was conducted with patient-reported quality of life and dermatologist-reported measures of primary and secondary (scar) acne severity using 3 assessment approaches: maximal regional grade, total grade, and facial grade.

Results: The most highly associated factors with acne treatment recommendations were patient emotions, maximal regional acne severity, and total acne scar grade. Better acne-specific quality of life was negatively related to acne treatment recommendation intensity, while all 3 grading approaches were positively related to acne treatment recommendations.

Conclusions: For dermatologists, overall acne severity is most highly associated with maximal regional acne grade, total scar grade, and patient's emotional response to acne.

Keywords: acne; dermatology.

Publication types

Observational Study
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Acne Vulgaris / diagnosis*
Acne Vulgaris / pathology
Acne Vulgaris / psychology*
Canada
Cross-Sectional Studies
Humans
Physician-Patient Relations*
Physicians
Quality of Life / psychology*
Severity of Illness Index