Pemphigus and quality of life.

Measuring the impact of disease on quality of life (QOL) is important for evaluating effectiveness of care and capturing aspects of health that may not correlate with clinical severity. Few QOL studies have been conducted on pemphigus, and a disease-specific QOL questionnaire for this condition has not been developed. The 5 previous studies of the effect of pemphigus on QOL used generic health or skin-specific measures. These measures have limitations, and results from these studies have sometimes been conflicting. The development of a disease-specific measure for pemphigus would allow for better monitoring of patients' QOL and improve management.