RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Clinical characteristics of psoriasis vary between different races and climates. There are few data on Latin American and even fewer on Chilean patients with psoriasis. OBJECTIVES: To assess that clinical characteristics and quality of life (QoL) of a group of Chilean patients with psoriasis. METHODS: A cross-sectional, observational and analytic study was conducted at the Dermatology Department of the Clinical Hospital of the University of Chile between July 2006 and December 2008 applying an epidemiological and QoL-related survey to psoriatic patients. RESULTS: One hundred fifty-three patients with psoriasis were included in the study. The mean (SD) age was 42.7 (14.9) years and 60.1% of the patients were male. The most frequent disease subtype was plaque psoriasis (71.9%), followed by "guttatiform" (guttate morphology without confirmed streptococcal infection) psoriasis (17.7%). In 38.6% of patients, less than 10% of body surface area (BSA) was affected. Joint involvement was reported in 28.8% of patients. Those with early onset of disease (before 30 years of age) were more likely to have a positive family history of psoriasis. Hypertension and diabetes were present in 20.3% and 11.1% of patients, respectively. The mean Dermatology Life Quality Index was 14. Greater impact of the disease on QoL was associated with male sex, young age of onset, newly diagnosed disease, facial involvement, and widespread disease. CONCLUSION: Chilean patients with psoriasis have clinical characteristics and QoL comparable to patients in other countries. A notable difference, however, was the greater impact of psoriasis on the QoL of Chilean men compared to women.