2007 Volume 117 Issue 5 Pages 791-800
We conducted a questionnaire-based survey covering past and present treatment, degree of treatment satisfaction, pattern of topical ointment application, and quality of life (QOL) in elderly patients with psoriasis in order to assess their compliance with treatment and their QOL as patients as well as to improve the quality of treatment for psoriasis. In addition, we conducted the same survey with younger psoriasis patients and compared the results to those obtained from elderly patients for objective evaluation. The results of our survey revealed that the degree of stress with the use of an ointment is significantly lower in elderly patients than in younger patients. Moreover, there is less influence on QOL in elderly patients than in younger patients, especially with regard to “the option to wear some clothes” and “the influence on circumstances by dandruff from affected lesions”. Furthermore, the elderly tend to prefer topical ointment to oral treatment and to apply an ointment correctly following the doctor’s instructions. In contrast, the elderly do not have the positive image of new treatments, that younger patients do. The results of our survey indicate that the compliance with treatment and QOL is less impaired in elderly patients than in younger patients. Based on these results, we suggest that it is important for clinicians to treat elderly patients mainly with topical ointments accompanied by proper instructions, so that they can maintain a high level of compliance with the treatment.
