PROMIS Measures effective tools for Assessing Impact of Chronic Skin Diseases: JAMA
A recent study published in JAMA Dermatology has demonstrated that PROMIS measures are valid tools for evaluating the physical, emotional, and social effects of chronic skin diseases. Measures assessing physical and social impact were responsive to treatment-related improvements, supporting their use in monitoring patient outcomes. The study was conducted by Michael R. and colleagues.
Atopic dermatitis, acne, and psoriasis are chronic skin conditions that not only affect the physical symptoms of patients but also have an influence on the psychological and social aspects of life. Though there exist some disease-specific tools, such as patient-reported outcomes in the field of dermatology, some generic tools, such as the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS), have proven an advantage of standardization in terms of various diseases. The goal of this study was to determine the ability of PROMIS Short Form measures to detect anxiety, depression, social satisfaction, social isolation, pain, and itch in patients suffering from chronic skin conditions.
The cohort study retrospectively recruited adult patients 18 years and older with self-reported chronic dermatological conditions from the United States through an online survey platform during the month of February 2025. Patients were administered baseline questionnaires that consisted of the PROMIS short forms on anxiety, depressive symptoms, satisfaction with social roles, and perceptions of social isolation, as well as single-item measures on pain and itching intensity. Concurrent measures consisted of the Dermatology Life Quality Index, Skindex-29, and patient global assessment. Follow-up questionnaires will be administered 3 months later, with construct validity, internal consistency, responsiveness, and structural validity evaluated on the PROMIS short forms, and construct validity and responsiveness on the single-item measures of pain and itching intensity.
A total of 549 adult patients with chronic skin diseases were considered for the study. Of those participants, 287 (52.3%) were women, while the remaining 262 (47.7%) were men. The average age was 36 years (IQR, 30-45 years). Atopic dermatitis was seen in 249 (45.1%) patients, acne in 246 (44.8%) patients, while psoriasis was identified in 113 (20.6%) patients.
Key Findings
The PROMIS short forms for anxiety, depression, satisfaction with social relationships, and isolation from others had robust values on structural validity tests, with CGFI and TL values over 0.95 and SRMR values under 0.08.
The Crohnbach α values were high on all the short forms, all values being over 0.90. Construct validity could be ascertained by performing the test on known groups and convergent validity, with Pearson values at 0.30 or greater between those measuring related constructs.
In responsiveness analysis, pain (standardized response mean [SRM], 0.41) and itch intensity (SRM range, 0.32 to 0.44) were as responsive as the Skindex-29 symptoms domain (SRM, 0.47). Items assessing social satisfaction (SRM, −0.20) and isolation (SRM, 0.27) were as responsive as the Skindex-29 functioning domain (SRM, 0.25).
However, mood-related items of anxiety (SRM, 0.11) and depression (SRM, 0.16) were less responsive.
This research shows that PROMIS questionnaires are valid instruments for evaluating the influence of physical, emotional, and social effects of chronic skin diseases, most importantly, their influence on physical symptoms and social effects. The results of this research confirm the importance of PROMIS questionnaires in dermatology practices and research regarding their use as valid instruments for a focused approach to outcome measurement.
Reference:
Nock MR, Ershadi S, Sánchez-Feliciano A, et al. Measurement Properties of PROMIS Measures Relevant to Chronic Skin Diseases. JAMA Dermatol. Published online December 23, 2025. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2025.5163
