Appearance-related concerns harm mental health in patients with vascular malformations

Concerns regarding physical appearance are very common among patients suffering from peripheral vascular malformations (VMs), a new study has found. Harbouring these concerns, in turn, could have negative impacts on patients’ mental health-related quality of life (HRQoL).

The cross-sectional analysis included 384 adults and 194 children with VMs. Appearance-related concerns were evaluated using Outcome Measures for Vascular Malformations questionnaire, which assessed such concerns across four domains, including colour difference, facial distortion, reduced self-esteem, and appearance dissatisfaction. The Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System was used to evaluate HRQoL.

Of the 184 patients who completed both questionnaires, 66 percent (n=121) said that at least one appearance-related metric was severely affective. Thirty-four percent found that the colour of the VM to be very or extremely different than their normal skin, while 26 percent reported the VM texture to be so.

In terms of size, 36 percent felt that the VM was large or very large, while 23 percent reported large or very large swelling.

Moreover, 13 percent of patients described their own facial features as very or extremely distorted, while 21 percent felt the same way about their bodily features. Meanwhile, 18 percent and 11 percent said that they were being stared frequently, and that their self-esteem had been strongly or extremely reduced, respectively.

Overall, 31 percent said they were dissatisfied with the VM appearance.

In turn, appearance-related concerns and poor self-esteem were correlated with poor mental HRQoL in adults, leading to symptoms of anxiety and depression. In children, bodily distortion was tied to pain interference.