A rosacea-specific quality-of-life (QoL) instrument has been reported by Nicholson, et al., which composed 21 rosacea-specific items. The conclusion of this report says, "The rosacea-specific QOL instrument, RosaQoL*, appears to be a reliable and valid QOL instrument and shows preliminary responsiveness for patients with improving rosacea."
Suephy C Chen**, Associate Editor of the Journal of Investigative Dermatology says that the RosaQoL "captures such topics as avoiding certain foods or drinks and frequency of flushing." and that "These issues are not posed in skin-specific quality of life measures because they do not pertain to all skin conditions." She also states that "As more therapies are developed for skin disease, there will be a need for highly sensitive instruments to demonstrate responsiveness in quality of life, and the most sensitive instruments will be disease-specific." She discusses some of the problems with QoL studies and mentions that "Although there is consensus that quality of life incorporates the perception of physical symptoms, effects on daily role function, and psychological impact, there is much disagreement and confusion about precise definitions, with researchers often using the same term (quality of life) to mean very different things."
I have written a couple of articles on lifestyle a rosacea psychology.
*A pilot quality-of-life instrument for acne rosacea.
Nicholson K, Abramova L, Chren MM, Yeung J, Chon SY, Chen SC.
Department of Dermatology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 2007 Aug;57(2):213-21. Epub 2007 Apr 18
**Editorial - Dermatology Quality of Life Instruments: Sorting Out the Quagmire
Suephy C Chen Associate Editor
Journal of Investigative Dermatology (2007) 127, 2695–2696. doi:10.1038/sj.jid.5701176
