Adult patients with alopecia areata report a significantly better medication adherence compared to those with atopic dermatitis – results from a large cross-sectional cohort study

Background Alopecia areata (AA) and atopic dermatitis (AD) are chronic skin diseases where the suboptimal MA may result in poor clinical outcomes. Objective To assess the impact of AA on MA among adults compared to AD. Methods Patient reported MA of adults with AA were compared with AD. Patients were identified from the Danish Skin Cohort, a nationwide prospective cohort of dermatological patients in Denmark. We used the Medication Adherence Report Scale- 5 (MARS-5), a self-reporting questionnaire, to assess MA. Demographic and disease characteristics were collected. Logistic regression was conducted. Results Patients with AA reported higher MA than AD (Mean 21.81 vs 18.29). Logistic regression analyses showed AA diagnosis had a statistically significant positive effect on MA (OR=3.94, 95% CI 2.01-8.89). Men reported significantly higher MA (OR=1.49, 95% CI 1.14-1.94). Current disease severity did not impact MA. Limitations Data were self-reported by patients. Data regarding the specific treatment undergone by patients was not available. Conclusion Patients with AA have significantly higher MA compared to patients with AD. The stability of AA patients' symptoms may lead to higher MA due to a desire for disease control. Conversely, the sporadicity of AD symptoms could negatively affect adherence, causing fluctuations in medication use.