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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Med.
Sec. Dermatology
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1458394

Psychosocial Impact of Climatotherapy in Young Patients with Psoriasis: A 3-Month Cohort Study

Provisionally accepted
Max Nordgren Max Nordgren 1,2Albert Duvetorp Albert Duvetorp 3,4,5*
  • 1 Diagnostiskt Centrum Hud, Malmö, Sweden
  • 2 Region Skane, Kristianstad, Sweden
  • 3 Leo Foundation Skin Immunology Research Center, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Capital Region of Denmark, Denmark
  • 4 Department of Clinical Sciences, Malmö, Lund University, Lund, Skane County, Sweden
  • 5 Hudmottagningen SkÃ¥nes Universitetssjukhus, Region Skane, Kristianstad, Sweden

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Ultraviolet rays are known to have positive effect on psoriasis but the cold climate and latitude in Northern Europe reduces access to sun. Climatotherapy is a treatment modality where the patient is relocated to a warmer region with high UV-index. Young patients with psoriasis can be particularly burdened by the disease and studies have shown an association between psoriasis and mood disorders. Patients who have undergone climatotherapy often report beneficial psychological effects after treatment, but this has not yet been studied. To explore the psychosocial impact of climatotherapy, an observational study was designed. 34 participants (median age 24) underwent three weeks of treatment in Gran Canaria (Spain) and responded to questionnaires assessing psychosocial aspects of disease. Climatotherapy was associated with significant reduced scores of HADS, PSS-10, PSQ, EQ VAS, DLQI and itch intensity at end of, and at 3 months after end of treatment compared to before treatment onset. The results suggest that climatotherapy not only exerts effects on psoriasis skin disease but also improve symptoms of anxiety, depression, perceived stigmatization, stress, quality of life, self-assessed overall health perception and itch intensity. The results can be of use in the decision-making process when choosing a suitable treatment for young patients with psoriasis.

    Keywords: climatotherapy1, heliotherapy2, phototherapy3, psoriasis4, psychosocial factors5, prospective study6

    Received: 10 Jul 2024; Accepted: 07 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Nordgren and Duvetorp. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Albert Duvetorp, Leo Foundation Skin Immunology Research Center, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, DK-2100, Capital Region of Denmark, Denmark

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.