Cumulative life course impairment: Evidence for hidradenitis suppurativa.

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) adversely affects quality of life, education, work, relationships and mental health. The debilitating effects of HS can compound over a patient's lifetime and have lasting repercussions. The cumulative life course impairment (CLCI) model analyses the disease factors that could affect the life course trajectory of a patient, including effects on major life decisions and opportunities, such as relationships, career path, education and starting a family. As with other diseases, direct longitudinal data for CLCI would require large long cohort studies. Nonetheless, the evidence supports that common domains delineated in the CLCI document impact that are consistent with the negative impact of HS on life course.