Quality of life and disease severity in dermatitis patients with fragrance allergy—A cross‐sectional European questionnaire study

Background Fragrance contact allergy is common, but few studies on quality of life (QoL) in affected patients exist. Recently, the disease‐specific Fragrance Quality of Life Index (FQLI) was developed. Objectives To characterize QoL in European dermatitis patients with fragrance contact allergy at the time of diagnosis. Methods This was a cross‐sectional study, in which 2011 Danish, British, Spanish and German adult consecutive dermatitis patients were invited to complete a questionnaire on self‐reported disease severity, the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), and the FQLI immediately prior to being patch tested. Results One thousand seven hundred and fifty‐eight patients responded, and 259 (14.7%; country range 11.7%‐18.5%) were fragrance‐positive. Among these, the total (SD) DLQI score was 6.2 (5.6) and the total (SD) FQLI score was 60 (25), with both estimates being comparable to those in fragrance‐negative patients. Adjusting the total FQLI score for age, sex and self‐rated disease severity showed a higher (ie, worse) score in fragrance‐positive patients (3.6‐point increase; 95% confidence interval: 0.30‐6.8 points; P = 0.03). Specifically, contact allergy to oxidized linalool was associated with greater impairment in QoL. Conclusions QoL in patients with fragrance contact allergy is impaired at a level comparable to that in other patch tested dermatitis patients, at the time of diagnosis, across several European countries.