Table 2.
Patient-reported differences between genital and nongenital psoriasis
| Representative patient quotations |
|---|
| Itch |
| [On my arms and legs] it’s just itching, and I scratch it until the itch goes away. But the only place I’ve ever bled was in my genitals because I scratch so much. (F) |
| It’s totally different. It’s like the itch you can’t ever get rid of it. (F) |
| [My other psoriasis] itches, it may be 5 or 7 intermittently, but there’s almost never pain, burning. [Genital psoriasis] itches 24 h a day, a subliminal pain or itch. You can’t scratch it 24 h a day. Then because you’re not scratching it, the itch becomes a discomfort, a distraction. (M) |
| Pain |
| Other places on my body might itch more, but genital psoriasis is definitely one that hurts the most. (M) |
| The psoriasis I have on my elbows and my knees, there…may be a little discomfort associated. But it’s certainly nothing that affects how I live my life. Whereas the psoriasis has resulted in behavioral changes on the genital side. The pain would be really only in the genital area. (F) |
| This is a different pain. With my psoriasis on the other parts of my body, it’s like some mornings I can’t even get out of bed it hurts so bad. (F) |
| Discomfort |
| When you walk, sit, stand, you are always using that area. I can’t not notice the discomfort. (F) |
| I don’t really have pain with it. But you can’t dry [that area] out so it stays wet and sore all the time. (F) |
| Stinging/burning |
| The itching is worse on my scalp where I have the thick erythema. The burning is worse in the genital area, it’s like putting a hot match head on your skin. (M) |
| Cracking |
| The other parts of my body all hurt. But they doesn’t ever crack and bleed like my penis and scrotum area…When it cracks it’s exposed to this newer skin so it’s very, very sensitive. Showers are always painful for the first or second day. (M) |
| Mistaken for STD |
| I become more self-conscious…a sexual partner or someone else may possibly perceive that as a sexually transmitted disease. (M) |
F female, M male, STD sexually transmitted disease
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 patients with genital psoriasis. Selected quotations are from patients and have been edited to minimize repetitive language