Introduction:

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory disease and the assessment of the quality of life and the severity of the disease is important to help the clinical and therapeutic approach.

Objective:

To assess the impact of AD on the quality of life of patients and caregivers and correlate with the severity of the disease.

Material and Methods:

Cross-sectional study, with assessment of socio-demographic characteristics and application of questionnaires in caregivers and pediatric patients with AD observed between March and May 2018, in a dermatology clinic. Severity was assessed according to the Scoring Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) and classified as mild, moderate or severe. The Dermatitis Family Impact Questionnaire (DFI) and the Children`s Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI) were used to assess quality of life.

Results:

Thirty-four patients with AD between 4 and 15 years old were evaluated. The SCORAD mean was 29.14 (SD ± 14.85), 32% mild, 44% moderate and 24% severe. The CDLQI mean was 7.32 (SD ± 5.91) and the DFI was 12.62 (SD ± 7.34). The most compromised domain in the DFI was the global impact on the caregiver´s life, followed by treatment expenses. In the CDLQI evaluation, the items with the worst indexes were itching and sleep disorders. There was a significant difference in the quality of life of patients (p = 0.01) and caregivers (p = 0.005) between patients with mild and severe AD, which was not found between moderate and severe AD. The quality of life indexes of caregivers (ρ = 0.62; p <0.0001) and patients (ρ= 0.53; p = 0.001) showed a positive and moderate correlation with SCORAD and with each other (ρ = 0.64; p < 0.0001).

Conclusion:

AD interferes negatively in the quality of life of patients and their families, with the worst rates related to the greater severity of the disease.

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