Psychiatric disorders, family functions, and parent psychiatric symptoms in children and adolescents with chronic dermatological diseases treated with phototherapy

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine comorbid psychiatric disorders, family functioning, and parental psychiatric symptoms in children and adolescents with chronic dermatological diseases and compare them with those of healthy controls. Materials and Methods: The research sample consisted of patients between the age of 9 and 18 years (n = 45) with alopecia areata, vitiligo, or psoriasis and a control group (CG) of healthy children and adolescents of the same age (n = 42). The psychiatric diagnoses of cases were established using Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School Aged Children Present-Lifetime Version. Family assessment device (FAD) was used to evaluate family functioning levels. Parental psychiatric symptom levels were obtained by the Symptom Checklist-90-R. Results: Children and adolescents with chronic dermatological diseases had significantly higher rates of any anxiety disorders and any axis I comorbid psychiatric disorders than healthy controls after adjusting for socioeconomic status (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in parental psychiatric symptom levels and family functioning levels between two groups; however, families of patients with comorbid psychiatric disorders had significantly higher scores in problem-solving and communication subscales of the FAD when compared to those of patients without psychiatric disorders and CG. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that children and adolescents with chronic dermatological diseases have higher risk for anxiety disorders. When psychiatric disorders co-occur with the dermatological disease in children and adolescents, they may adversely affect the family functioning, in the domains of problem-solving and communication skills.