Abstract
Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS) is a chronic skin disease involving intimate and sensitive areas and affecting physical and mental health. We investigated the prevalence of sexual desire and functioning impairment, and their associations with quality of life, anxiety, depression, minor psychiatric disorders (MPD), and clinical features (e.g., disease severity) in 77 patients with HS who completed self-report measures and answered to questions assessing socio-demographic characteristics, lifestyle habits, and hindered sexuality due to HS. The majority of patients reported hindered sexuality, and poor sexual functioning, while showing good levels of dyadic and solitary sexual desire. No associations were found between clinical severity and sexuality measures. Multivariate analyses showed significant associations of sexual outcome measures with alcohol consumption, low Body Mass Index, family history of HS, and severe skin symptoms. Moreover, we found that the presence of negative psychological factors (i.e., MPD, anxiety, poor mental status) increased the risk of sexual impairment. These findings underline the important role of psychological and sexual aspects in HS patients and suggest that physicians should consider the effect of disease burden on patients' sexual health.
Highlights
Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, inflammatory, progressive, debilitating skin disease, characterized by painful, deep-seated, inflamed lesions, including nodules, sinus tracts, and malodourous abscesses [1]
Our results suggested that HS patients could have many problems in sexual function, while reporting good levels of sexual interest and desire
We found that many psychological factors, including minor psychiatric disorders, anxiety, and poor mental status, could increase the disease burden, predisposing to a greater risk of sexual difficulties
Summary
Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, inflammatory, progressive, debilitating skin disease, characterized by painful, deep-seated, inflamed lesions, including nodules, sinus tracts, and malodourous abscesses [1]. Literature reviews of previous studies [2, 3] suggested that HS causes a significant impairment of patients’ quality of life (QoL) and that depression and anxiety are common comorbidities in individuals with HS. People with HS reported high levels of alexithymia and psychological distress [4] as well as the worst quality of life among different skin conditions [5]. Due to the localization of lesions in sensitive and intimate body areas, HS may cause embarrassment and shame [5, 6] that hinder sexual activities [7]. Sexuality refers to “perceptions about one’s body; the need to touch and connect with others, in both intimate and social settings; interest and ability to engage in sexual behaviors; communication of one’s feelings and needs to others; and the ability to engage in satisfying sexual behaviors” [8].
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