No abstract

Many emerging adults live with mild-to-moderate visible facial acne, but little is known about their experiences. A qualitative interview study was conducted with 11 adults aged 18-22 years, which aimed to explore the meaning of living with visible acne. A thematic analysis revealed three superordinate themes: coping strategies, self-perceptions and interpersonal relationships. Results revealed the utility of researching visible acne in emerging adulthood, including the use of multiple coping strategies. Health psychologists need to consider individual differences for young adults who are living with a visible difference. The importance of the peer group and family is also explicated.

While there has been a considerable criticism and debate about face transplantation from ethicists, surgeons and psychologists, little is known about the attitudes of medical professionals and the general public whose support will be necessary if face transplants are to be accepted. This study therefore conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with medical professionals (8) and the general public (8) to explore their understanding of and attitudes to face transplants. A thematic analysis was used to analyse these data. Five overarching themes were identified including agreement in principal, caveats and conditions, medical and technical difficulties, function and appearance, and the significance of the human face. The analysis revealed overwhelming support in principle for face transplants, but with important caveats and conditions. Both groups shared clear representations of deserving and undeserving candidates, and concerns about psychological adjustment. The general public sample demonstrated little understanding of medical implications or the consequences of a failed graft, which did concern the medical professionals. Neither group showed a clear understanding of the psychological or social factors required to predict best outcomes and identify suitable candidates. Analyses revealed a stereotypical belief from both groups that the life of a severely disfigured recipient is intolerable without this operation.

Linked Article: Ip et al. Br J Dermatol 2020; 183:349–356.

In this issue of the BJD, Santer et al.1 report on a study where they conducted an inductive thematic analysis of online posts collected from open access UK forums, in which users discussed the use of oral antibiotics for acne. Qualitative researchers are increasingly making use of online forums, which provide a searchable resource that can be used by people for advice and information, with the potential to impact both positively and negatively on people's health behaviours. 2 Santer et al.selected four types of forums, including a general forum, an acne specific forum, a medical forum and a parenting focused forum, so as to include a range of diverse perspectives. The final data corpus included 65 discussions from 294 participants, resulting in 136 pages of data.