Mental health and psychological resilience among acne vulgaris patients during the pandemic: A cross-sectional controlled study.

ABSTRACT

Background The current literature has not yet addressed mental health among acne vulgaris (AV) patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the psychological status of AV patients and analyze the influencing factors on psychological symptoms, during the pandemic. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included consecutively selected 220 eligible AV patients and 190 age/sex-matched healthy subjects. The Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) checklist for DSM-5, Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21, Brief Resilience Scale, and the Stressful Life Events List resulting from the pandemic were administered to the participants. RESULTS: There were not significantly differences between the AV patients and the control group in terms of depression, anxiety, stress, psychological resilience levels, and experienced stressful life events. Probable PTSD rate was significantly higher for AV patients (16.4%) than the control groups (9.5%) (p = 0.040). High levels of depression and anxiety, low psychological resilience, and high levels in experienced traumatic life events predicted high severity in PTSD symptoms, whereas low psychological resilience predicted high levels of depression, anxiety, and stress in AV patients. CONCLUSIONS: AV patients are at high risk of developing PTSD during the COVID-19 pandemic. The obtained results highlight the need to assess their psychological state, in particular those with low psychological resilience.