Health-related quality of life among patients with facial acne - assessment of a new acne-specific questionnaire

The psychosocial effects of facial acne are well accepted but until recentl y few validated instruments existed which were suitable for use in clinical trials. The aim of this study was to assess measurement characteristics (r eproducibility, correlation with acne severity, and sensitivity to detect c hange after acne therapy) of a new acne-specific quality of life instrument , the Acne-QoL. We found that the Acne-Qol, is reliable, valid and able to distinguish differences across severity groups and improvement over 16 week s of standard therapy. The use of the Acne-QoL should aid physicians in und erstanding the impact of facial acne on young adults, and may be useful in assessing therapeutic effects in acne clinical trials.