Association between premature canities and quality of life at Medan, Indonesia 2017

Abstract

Introduction Premature canities is a terminology to describe a premature condition graying of hair before the age of 20 in Caucasians, 25 in Asians, and 30 in Africans, involving complex processes such as genetic, hormonal and environmental factors. Quality of life is generally measured using a validated questionnaire. Body Image Questionnaires (BIQ) is a questionnaire that specifically assesses the impact of self-appearance, especially in the hair appearance, on the individual self-esteem and the influences in life. In clinical practice, measuring the association of premature canities to the quality of life and understanding how a patient's life is affected by premature canities can be helpful in determining the most appropriate and better management for the patients.Aim: To evaluate the association between premature canities and quality of lifeMethods: This is a cross-sectional analytic method, with BIQ to assess the quality of life. Diagnosis of premature canities was made based on clinical examination. This study involving 63 subjects with premature canities and 114 normal subjects. Statistical analysis was done using descriptive method and chi-square test to assess the association between premature canities and quality of life.Results: There is a significant association between premature canities and quality of life (P<0.05). There is no significant association between age, sex, and severity degree of premature canities with quality of life (P>0.05).Conclusion: There is a significant association between premature canities and quality of life, but there is no association between age, sex and severity degree of premature canities with quality of life.