Abstract
Background Stress has been recently implicated as a contributing factor of hand eczema (HE) severity. However, published data are both rare and contradictory justifying the need of further research. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relation between stress and HE severity. Methods This is a cross-sectional study enrolling all patients who have been attending the Dermato-allergology unit of Farhat Hached University Hospital of Sousse over a period of one year. The HE severity was assessed by the Osnabrück Hand Eczema Severity Index (OHSI). The stress level was assessed by the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10) in its validated Arabic version. Results During the study period, 109 participants meeting the inclusion criteria were identified. The mean age was 40 ± 9.9 years with a sex-ratio of 0.8. Severe eczema was found in 76 participants (69.7%). A high level of perceived stress was found in 18.3% of cases. A statistically significant association was noted between HE severity and the high level of perceived stress (p=0.039, OR = 4.46, 95% CI [0.96–20.59]) and the number of dependent children ≥3 (p=0.0039, OR = 1.92, 95% CI [0.51–7.22]). Leisure activity was found to be a protective factor against HE severity (p=0.031, OR = 0.27, 95% CI [0.09–0.80]). Conclusion Although the link between the severity of eczema and atopy, wet work, and contact with irritants and allergens is well known, the relation remains questionable for other factors including stress.
Highlights
Hand eczema (HE) is a specific dermatosis because it touches the hand, main tool of work and communication, resulting in a variously felt discomfort [1].Chronic and severe forms can have a serious impact on the patient’s daily life, as it has individual and socioprofessional consequences [1]
E hand eczema (HE) severity was assessed by the Osnabruck Hand Eczema Severity Index (OHSI) [9]. is tool considers six morphological signs and estimates their extent in the affected area by a four level scale (0 to 3)
Severe HE was noted in 76 participants (69.7%) according to OHSI score
Summary
Hand eczema (HE) is a specific dermatosis because it touches the hand, main tool of work and communication, resulting in a variously felt discomfort [1]. Chronic and severe forms can have a serious impact on the patient’s daily life, as it has individual and socioprofessional consequences [1]. While a link between the severity of eczema and atopy, wet work, and contact with irritants and allergens is well known, the relation remains questionable for other factors including the stress, whether it is general or work-related [4, 5]. Studies on this subject are rare, and the results are contradictory, warranting further research so that firm conclusions can be drawn. E objective of our study was to look for a possible relation between the severity of HE and occupational stress
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