Patient satisfaction with treatment for hidradenitis suppurativa

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a long-term, recurrent and painful disease where there is inflammation (tenderness and swelling) in the armpits, breasts and groin. Nearly half of patients with HS report dissatisfaction with their treatment. However, there is little research exploring which factors are associated with patient satisfaction.

In this global study, we aimed to examine the relationship between levels of treatment satisfaction and clinical and treatment-related characteristics in people with HS. To do this, we looked at treatment satisfaction from the data in a global survey including 1,418 people with HS.

Patients were recruited from 27 institutions, across 14 countries from 2017 to 2018. The main outcome we focused on was patients’ self-reported overall satisfaction with their current HS treatment, which was measured on a scale ranging from ‘very dissatisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’.

We found that 45% of people were either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with their current HS treatment. Patients primarily treated by a dermatologist for HS were more likely to be satisfied with their treatment compared with patients not being primarily treated by a dermatologist. Treatment with biologics was associated with higher satisfaction relative to treatment with non-biologic systemic medications. Factors that appear to lower treatment satisfaction include smoking, having other conditions including depression and a high frequency of flares in their HS.

We concluded that an awareness of these factors that influence treatment satisfaction may assist with supporting shared decision-making between health professions and patients, with the goal of improving treatment outcomes.