Sexual quality of life in female patients with acne

Acne is a common skin disease which can have a negative psychosocial impact on quality of life. Sexual health is an important part of overall health and little is known about the effects of acne on individual sexuality. We aimed to assess the sexual quality of life and general quality of life in female patients with acne and compare to those without acne. Sixty female participants with acne and age-matched 40 female controls were enrolled in the study and asked to complete the Sexual Quality of Life-Female Questionnaire and the Short Form-36 Health Survey. Acne severity was evaluated objectively by the Global Acne Grading System and subjectively by the Visual Analogue Scale. Participants reported a significantly worse sexual quality of life and had significantly decreased scores on the quality of life scales of Bodily Pain, General Perception of Health and the Physical Component Summary when compared to controls. Neither the sexual quality of life nor the quality of life was correlated with objective and subjective acne severity and duration of acne. Acne can negatively affect sexual quality of life in female patients as well as differentdimensions of quality of life. The sexual quality of life should be considered while evaluating acne in women irrespective of its severity.