Emotional Ability and Skin-restricted Lupus Evolution: A Longitudinal Study

• Published in: Acta dermato-venereologica Vol. 99; no. 6; pp. 564 - 570
• Main Authors: Jalenques, Isabelle, Rondepierre, Fabien, Mulliez, Aurélien, D'Incan, Michel, Consoli, Silla M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sweden Society for Publication of Acta Dermato-Venereologica 01.05.2019; Medical Journals Sweden
• Subjects: Adult; Affective Symptoms - psychology; alexithymia (TAS-20); Cognitive science; Cognitive Sciences; Emotional Intelligence; emotional processing; Female; Humans; Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale (LEAS); Life Sciences; Longitudinal Studies; longitudinal study; Lupus Erythematosus, Cutaneous - psychology; Male; Middle Aged; Neurobiology; Neurons and Cognition; Neuroscience; psychiatric disorders; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychology and behavior; skin-restricted lupus; alexithymia (TAS-20); longitudinal study; skin-restricted lupus; Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale (LEAS); emotional processing; psychiatric disorders
• ISSN: 0001-5555; 1651-2057
• DOI: 10.2340/00015555-3161

Impaired emotional abilities (higher scores of alexithymia and lower levels of emotional awareness) were found in patients with skin-restricted lupus, warranting examination of the relationship between these abilities and the evolution of skin-restricted lupus, using longitudinal data. A total of 75 consecutive outpatients with skin-restricted lupus were recruited and assessed by a dermatologist and a psychiatrist every 6 months over a period of 2.5 years. Alexithymia and emotional awareness were evaluated with the French versions of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale (LEAS). During follow-up, good stability of the LEAS scores was observed, whereas TAS-20 scores varied; those variations were positively associated both with lupus duration and current psychiatric and personality disorders, but not with lupus remission. Such findings regarding 2 complementary aspects of emotional functioning are of direct interest for the management of patients with skin-restricted lupus.