Maurer M, Ortonne J-P, Zuberbier T
Allergie-Centrum-Charité, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Charité- Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Charitéplatz 1, D-10117 Berlin, Germany.
Br J Dermatol. 2009 Mar;160(3):633-41. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2133.2008.08920.x. Epub 2008 Nov 11.
Chronic urticaria (CU) is a common skin disorder characterized by spontaneous outbreaks of itchy weals and/or angio-oedema over a period of 6 weeks or longer. Very little is known about the health behaviour, symptom patterns or unmet treatment needs of patients with CU.
To determine how patients with CU manage their condition, when and where their symptom outbreaks occur and what their greatest unmet treatment needs are.
An internet survey was conducted with 321 randomly selected, representative adults in Germany and France diagnosed with CU. The survey covered patient health behaviour, when and where symptoms occur and which effects of CU remain unaddressed.
The survey found that 78% of the respondents were taking prescription or over-the-counter medication, yet only 33% of those taking medication did so preventively always or often. For 58% of respondents, CU outbreaks lasted 6-10 weeks, while 12% of patients had CU continuously for 52 weeks year(-1). The body parts most frequently reported as most affected by CU were the arms (55% of women and 57% of men; not significant) and the legs (42% of women and 32% of men; P = 0.043). More respondents were bothered by symptoms in the evening (34%) than during the night (23%), morning (23%) or afternoon (20%), and the mode of the frequency for sleep being affected was three nights per week. Itching and physical discomfort remained inadequately addressed for 68% of the respondents, and sleep disturbances from CU remained inadequately addressed for 48% of respondents.
A better understanding of health behaviour, symptom pattern and unmet needs of patients with CU will enable physicians and patients to manage this disabling condition more effectively.
慢性荨麻疹（CU）是一种常见的皮肤疾病，其特征为在6周或更长时间内自发出现瘙痒性风团和/或血管性水肿。对于CU患者的健康行为、症状模式或未满足的治疗需求，人们了解甚少。
确定CU患者如何应对自身病情，症状发作的时间和地点，以及他们最大的未满足治疗需求是什么。
对德国和法国321名随机选取的、具有代表性的成年CU确诊患者进行了一项网络调查。该调查涵盖了患者的健康行为、症状出现的时间和地点，以及CU未得到解决的影响。
调查发现，78%的受访者正在服用处方药或非处方药，但服药患者中只有33%总是或经常预防性服药。对于58%的受访者，CU发作持续6至10周，而12%的患者每年持续CU发作52周。报告受CU影响最严重的身体部位是手臂（女性55%，男性57%；无显著差异）和腿部（女性42%，男性32%；P = 0.043）。晚上（34%）出现症状的受访者比夜间（23%）、早晨（23%）或下午（20%）更多，睡眠受影响的频率模式为每周三个晚上。68%的受访者的瘙痒和身体不适问题未得到充分解决，48%的受访者的CU引起的睡眠障碍问题未得到充分解决。
更好地了解CU患者的健康行为、症状模式和未满足的需求，将使医生和患者能够更有效地应对这种致残性疾病。
