Impact of postinflammatory hyperpigmentation on quality of life in patients with skin of color

Background: Dyschromias are the second most commonly diagnosed dermatological entity in patients with skin of color (SOC). People with SOC develop postinflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) with a higher frequency and greater severity attributed to the presence of reactive melanocytes. This can have severe repercussions on self-esteem and social/emotional functioning. While there are studies on the impact of post-acne PIH on quality of life (QOL), the assessment of impact of PIH on QOL as a heterogenous group of dermatoses has not been studied previously. Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of PIH on QOL in patients with SOC using Skindex-16. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted from October 2019 to September 2021, involving 60 patients with SOC having biopsy-proven PIH. All patients underwent thorough clinical workup, followed by the administration of the Skindex-16 questionnaire. Data were tabulated and analyzed. Results: The mean age was 32.53±11.73 years: 35 (58%) patients were male, and 25 (42%) were females. Most patients presented with PIH secondary to papulosquamous disorders (n=23; 38.34%), followed by acne/acneiform eruptions (n=11; 18.33%). The mean scores for symptoms, emotions, functioning, and total scores were 0.37±0.51, 2.30±1.13, 2.26±1.40, and 1.64±0.85, respectively. PIH lesions with simultaneous evolution were associated with higher symptoms subscale scores. A previous tendency of PIH, involvement of exposed sites, higher intensity of PIH, epidermal PIH, and lesions accentuating on Wood’s lamp had higher, statistically significant impact on emotions, functioning, and total scores. Conclusion: PIH had significant impact on Quality of Life in patients of Skin-of-Color. Our study was limited by the sample size, and larger, multicentric, population-based studies are recommended.