Vulvar quality of life index (VQLI) – A simple tool to measure quality of life in patients with vulvar disease

Saunderson, Rebecca B.; Harris, Victoria; Yeh, Rudy; Mallitt, Kylie‐Ann; Fischer, Gayle

doi:10.1111/ajd.13235

Cited by 35 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 28 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…and Felmingham et al . [ 9 10 ] Our center caters primarily to rural population owing to its location, hence patients do not always seek medical attention because of fear or embarrassment and among those who seek treatment often present late with mis/undertreatment and therefore have more predilection for development of complications. Adding to the owe of the patients, physicians may fail to recognize the disorder leading to misdiagnosis and mistreatment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A study on clinical spectrum of lichen sclerosus in a tertiary care Centre in North India

Brar¹,

Bano

Puri

et al. 2022

Indian Journal of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction: Lichen sclerosus (LS) is a chronic dermatosis frequently located over labial, perineal, and perianal areas. The etiology is multifactorial and includes genetic, autoimmune, hormonal, and infectious aspects. Materials and Methods: A series of twenty genital LS patients was carried out to evaluate the signs, symptoms, complications, and affliction of quality of life. Results: Eighteen out of twenty patients were female between 30 and 73 years and showed smooth, glistening, and whitish plaques. The mean duration was 8.4 years. Itching and burning was the most common symptom (75%) corresponding to excoriation and fissuring of genitalia (75%). Malignancy was seen in two cases (10%). The mean Vulvar Quality of Life Index was 9.2, higher in younger patients. Discussion: LS is a disorder of older age group with female preponderance. It is a source of significant morbidity, and long-standing cases predispose to vulvar malignancy. Conclusion: To conclude, early diagnosis with proper counselling of the patient and his/her partner regarding various aspects of disease are essential for a wholesome approach.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A study on clinical spectrum of lichen sclerosus in a tertiary care Centre in North India

Brar¹,

Bano

Puri

et al. 2022

Indian Journal of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…While there has been little agreement on a VLS severity scoring system to date, the panel affirmed that severity scoring should be based on physician assessment and supplemented with a Quality of Life assessment tool such as the VQLI (Vulval Quality of life Index) 16 . VLS has a significant impact on the quality of life, including sexual function 2 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vulval lichen sclerosus: An Australasian management consensus

et al. 2021

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background/Objectives: Vulval lichen sclerosus (VLS) is a chronic inflammatory skin condition predominantly affecting the anogenital region in women and children. To date, there is lack of agreement amongst experts on a severity scale to aid assessment, research and treatment stratification on VLS. Furthermore, literature on best practice for long-term management of VLS is lacking. The aim of this consensus is to provide broad guidelines on the short and long-term management of VLS.Methods: An initial focus group of Australasian experts in vulval dermatology developed a draft consensus statement for the management of VLS. Based on the results of the draft statement, a consensus panel of 22 Australasian experts, comprised of the initial and additional members, participated in an anonymous four-stage eDelphi process. Round 1 involved generation and voting on statements from the draft consensus statement developed by the focus group. In Rounds 2, 3 & 4, panel members were presented formal feedback from previous rounds and asked to indicate their level of agreement. Consensus was reached if there was ≥70% agreement on the importance of an item in the 4 (agree) to 5 (strongly agree) range. Results:The expert panel, with a total of 504 collective years of experience in the field of VLS, reached consensus on a core set of 51 management statements related to diagnosis, severity, initial and long-term management, follow-up, and complications of VLS. Conclusions:This study has identified a set of management statements for VLS that may be useful in clinical practice in the Australasian population.

show abstract

“…These included erosions, glazed erythema, heavy discharge, oral involvement, pain or burning sensation, vaginitis, vulvar erythema, scarring and hyperkeratotic border. The Vulvar Quality of Life Index (VQLI), 11 a validated quality of life evaluation tool, was recorded at the patient’s first visit and at each consequent visit. The following medical information was also collected: age at onset, other auto‐immune comorbidities, histopathology results and treatment(s) initiated.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forming diagnostic criteria for vulvar lichen planus

Lee

Fischer

2020

Aust J Dermatology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background/Objectives: Vulvar lichen planus is a debilitating skin condition usually complicated by delayed diagnosis due to its highly variable clinical appearance and inconsistent histopathological characteristics. This study aims to devise a clinical diagnostic tool for the disease and to correlate this with histopathology findings. Methods: The retrospective single-centre chart review was conducted for patients presenting between January 2010 and December 2019. Clinical features were compared between 243 women with clinically suspected vulvar lichen planus with available histopathology, 50 patients with biopsy-proven vulvar lichen sclerosus and 50 patients with cultureproven chronic vulvovaginal candidiasis. Features which significantly differentiated between conditions were further studied using multivariate nonlinear regression analyses to formulate a score-based diagnostic criteria. Criteria was then applied to the remaining patients with inconclusive biopsies (classified as 'normal', 'non-specific' or 'suggestive or lichenoid') to determine sensitivity and specificity. Results: The clinical features that significantly differentiated the conditions were the presence of erosions (P < 0.001), glazed erythema (P < 0.001), oral involvement (P < 0.001), pain/burning sensation (P < 0.001) and hyperkeratotic border (P < 0.001). A score ≥2 correlated with a histopathological diagnosis of vulvar lichen planus with a sensitivity of 100%. The specificity was 92% and 88% when compared against vulvar lichen sclerosus and chronic vulvovaginal candidiasis, respectively. Sensitivity was 97%, 97% and 93% in suggestive, nonspecific and normal histopathological subgroups, respectively. Conclusions and Relevance: The proposed criteria may aid clinicians in diagnosing patients if histopathology is inconclusive. Nonspecific and suggestive findings on biopsy for patients with ≥2 features on diagnostic criteria are comparable to a conclusive biopsy.

show abstract

Vulvar quality of life index (VQLI) – A simple tool to measure quality of life in patients with vulvar disease

Cited by 35 publications

References 28 publications

A study on clinical spectrum of lichen sclerosus in a tertiary care Centre in North India

A study on clinical spectrum of lichen sclerosus in a tertiary care Centre in North India

Vulval lichen sclerosus: An Australasian management consensus

Forming diagnostic criteria for vulvar lichen planus

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About