Impact of hand eczema severity on quality of life: a hospital based cross-sectional study

Abstract

Introduction: Hands are important organs of expression, communication, and are necessary for household and work-related activity. Thus, hand eczema can deteriorate quality of life. This study aims to find impact of hand eczema severity on quality of life. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done in a tertiary care hospital in Punjab from January to July, 2014. A total of 69 hand eczema patients of either gender aged ≥16 years were enrolled after taking an informed consent. Disease severity was assessed by hand eczema severity index (HECSI) score; and quality of life by dermatology life quality index (DLQI) questionnaire. The data was evaluated using statistical tests like frequency, chi-square, oneway ANOVA, t-test etc. Results: Out of 69 patients, 63.8% were males and 36.2% females. The commonest age group affected was 21-40 years (55.1% cases). Aggravating factors were reported by 76.8% patients, the commonest trigger being summer season (47.8%) followed by soaps and detergents (21.7%). The mean±S.D. for DLQI was 6.22±5.42 and for HECSI was 18.54±17.05. There was no statistically significant impact of age, occupation and duration of disease on DLQI or disease severity except gender (p-value being 0.028 for DLQI; 0.035 for HECSI). There was no significant correlation between HECSI score and DLQI. Conclusion: Majority of the patients with hand eczema had a significant impairment of their quality of life. There was a statistically significant impact of gender on hand eczema severity; although no correlation was found between DLQI and HECSI score in this study.