Tan Yi Jun, Jamil Adawiyah, Gunabalasingam Preamala
MD, MRCP, Department Dermatology, Hospital Tuanku Ja'afar, Jalan Rasah, Bukit Rasah, Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Email:
MB BCh BAO, MMed, AdvMDerm, Department Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Yaacob Latif Kuala lumpur, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Malays Fam Physician. 2025 Jan 21;20:3. doi: 10.51866/oa.622. eCollection 2025.
Acne is a common chronic inflammatory disease. Misconceptions hinder effective management. This study aimed to explore disease perception, treatment-seeking behaviour and the psychosocial impact of acne.
A cross-sectional study was conducted in four universities. A self-administered questionnaire was developed and validated. During clinical examination, acne severity was determined using the Comprehensive Acne Severity Scale (CASS) and psychosocial impact using the Cardiff Acne Disability Index (CADI).
Four hundred students with acne aged 20±1.62 years participated, among whom 62.5% were women. The self-perceived acne severity matched the CASS score in 54.4% of the participants but was worse in 37.5%. Approximately 80.5% correctly recognised acne as a disease, while beliefs about its chronicity varied. The aggravating factors were food (92.8%), genetic predisposition (92.8%), stress (91.3%), hygiene (86.3%) and menstruation (84.8%). The information sources were families (79.7%), online social media platforms (60.2%) and friends (58.5%). Doctor consultation was significantly associated with correct disease perception, severe disease and higher psychosocial impact. Cost was the commonest deterrent for seeking (63.8%) and discontinuing treatment (43.2%). The psychosocial impact was predominantly mild (71%). The CADI domains mostly affected were feelings and psychological state. The clinical (odd ratio [OR] =2.29, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.45, 3.61) and self-perceived acne severity (OR=4.83, 95% CI=2.79, 8.35) predicted a higher psychosocial impact.
Misconceptions about acne as a disease were not prevalent, and aggravating factors other than food were correctly identified. Common information sources may further perpetuate misconceptions. Financial treatment barriers should be addressed especially in patients with severe acne and psychosocial impacts.
痤疮是一种常见的慢性炎症性疾病。误解阻碍了有效的治疗管理。本研究旨在探讨对该疾病的认知、寻求治疗行为以及痤疮的心理社会影响。
在四所大学开展了一项横断面研究。自行设计并验证了一份调查问卷。在临床检查期间，使用综合痤疮严重程度量表（CASS）确定痤疮严重程度，使用加的夫痤疮残疾指数（CADI）确定心理社会影响。
400名年龄为20±1.62岁的痤疮学生参与了研究，其中62.5%为女性。54.4%的参与者自我感知的痤疮严重程度与CASS评分相符，但37.5%的参与者认为更严重。约80.5%的人正确认识到痤疮是一种疾病，但其关于慢性病程的认知存在差异。加重因素包括食物（92.8%）、遗传易感性（92.8%）、压力（91.3%）、卫生习惯（86.3%）和月经（84.8%）。信息来源包括家庭（79.7%）、在线社交媒体平台（60.2%）和朋友（58.5%）。医生咨询与正确的疾病认知、严重疾病以及更高的心理社会影响显著相关。费用是寻求治疗（63.8%）和停止治疗（43.2%）最常见的阻碍因素。心理社会影响主要为轻度（71%）。CADI受影响最大的领域是情感和心理状态。临床痤疮严重程度（比值比[OR]=2.29，95%置信区间[CI]=1.45，3.61）和自我感知的痤疮严重程度（OR=4.83，95%CI=2.79，8.35）预示着更高的心理社会影响。
对痤疮作为一种疾病的误解并不普遍，除食物外的加重因素得到了正确识别。常见的信息来源可能会使误解进一步延续。应解决治疗的经济障碍，尤其是对有严重痤疮和心理社会影响的患者。
