Willingness-To-Pay of Patients With Chronic Skin Diseases: A Pilot Study

    September 2019 in “ Journal of Investigative Dermatology ”
    J. Lee, R. Lee, Hyun Jeong Ju, Myungshin Kim, J. Kim, Chul Hwan Bang, Jae Hoon Han, J. Lee, Young Sup Woo, Jung Min Bae
    TLDR Vitiligo patients are willing to pay the most for treatment, regardless of disease severity.
    This pilot study evaluated the quality of life (QoL) and willingness-to-pay (WTP) in 124 patients with chronic skin diseases, including alopecia areata (AA), atopic dermatitis (AD), chronic urticaria (CU), psoriasis, and vitiligo. Using the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) and WTP questionnaires, the study found that AD patients had the highest median DLQI score (13), while vitiligo patients had the highest median monthly WTP for disease control ($185) and one-time WTP for disease cure ($1891). Interestingly, vitiligo patients exhibited high WTP regardless of their body surface area (BSA) involvement, suggesting that DLQI may not be a critical indicator of treatment decisions.
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