Impacts of facial pigmentary disorders: Novel insights explaining discordance between life quality scores and willingness to pay

The aim of this study was to directly compare the quality of life and willingness to pay (WTP) in patients with different facial pigmentary disorders. A single-center, cross-sectional study comprising of patients seeking treatment for facial discoloration was performed. All patients completed the dermatology life quality index (DLQI) and the short form-36 (SF-36) health survey questionnaires. Additionally, information regarding monthly income and the proportion of monthly income willing to pay for complete cure of the affected condition was obtained. 212 patients with facial discoloration were enrolled and categorized into hyperpigmentation (119), vitiligo (51), and erythema (42) groups. This study showed that compared with facial hyperpigmentation patients, vitiligo and erythema patients have significantly lower QoL. Only vitiligo patients view their condition affecting their general health as opposed to a disorder limiting to the skin. This finding provides a rationale explaining why vitiligo patients are more willing to pay a higher amount of monthly income for a complete cure.