Phobic anxiety disorders among patients with acne vulgaris at a national dermatology hospital in Vietnam: Prevalence, clinical phenotype, and associated factors
- 1Hanoi Medical University, Vietnam
- 2National Institute of Mental Health - Bach Mai Hospital, Vietnam
- 3National Hospital of Dermatology and Venereology, Vietnam
Abstract
Background: Acne vulgaris is associated with psychological morbidity, but clinically diagnosed phobic anxiety disorders (PADs) have been little studied in dermatology settings. Methods: The analysis comprised 280 patients with acne vulgaris recruited by convenience sampling at a national dermatology hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam, from December 2025 to June 2026. A psychiatrist established PAD diagnoses using ICD-10 clinical criteria; Fear Questionnaire scores were used descriptively to characterize phobic symptoms among diagnosed cases. Multivariable logistic regression estimated adjusted odds ratios (aORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for factors associated with PADs. Results: PADs were diagnosed in 69 of 280 participants (24.6%; 95% CI, 20.0%–30.0%). Social phobia affected 64 participants (22.9% of the sample; 92.8% of PAD cases), specific phobia affected 26 (9.3%), and agoraphobia affected one (0.4%); subtypes could co-occur. In the exploratory adjusted model, PADs were associated with study-specific anxiety-proneness rating (aOR, 6.90; 95% CI, 2.92–16.32), physical comorbidity (aOR, 4.70; 95% CI, 2.30–9.60), acne scarring (aOR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.04–5.05), and poor treatment response (aOR, 5.06; 95% CI, 2.20–11.62). Clinician-rated severe acne was not associated with PADs after adjustment. Conclusions: In this tertiary-care sample, PADs—predominantly social phobia—were common. Associations with scarring, treatment response, physical comorbidity, and study-specific anxiety-proneness warrant confirmation in prospective multicentre studies using standardized psychosocial and treatment-response measures.
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BibTeX
@article{tuan2026phobic,
title = {{Phobic anxiety disorders among patients with acne vulgaris at a national dermatology hospital in Vietnam: Prevalence, clinical phenotype, and associated factors}},
author = {Nguyen Van Tuan and Vu Thai Ha and Mai Son Duong},
journal = {PLOS One},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0357803},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357803},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Phobic anxiety disorders among patients with acne vulgaris at a national dermatology hospital in Vietnam: Prevalence, clinical phenotype, and associated factors
AU - Nguyen Van Tuan
AU - Vu Thai Ha
AU - Mai Son Duong
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/10
JO - PLOS One
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0357803
UR - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357803
AB - Background: Acne vulgaris is associated with psychological morbidity, but clinically diagnosed phobic anxiety disorders (PADs) have been little studied in dermatology settings. Methods: The analysis comprised 280 patients with acne vulgaris recruited by convenience sampling at a national dermatology hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam, from December 2025 to June 2026. A psychiatrist established PAD diagnoses using ICD-10 clinical criteria; Fear Questionnaire scores were used descriptively to characterize phobic symptoms among diagnosed cases. Multivariable logistic regression estimated adjusted odds ratios (aORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for factors associated with PADs. Results: PADs were diagnosed in 69 of 280 participants (24.6%; 95% CI, 20.0%–30.0%). Social phobia affected 64 participants (22.9% of the sample; 92.8% of PAD cases), specific phobia affected 26 (9.3%), and agoraphobia affected one (0.4%); subtypes could co-occur. In the exploratory adjusted model, PADs were associated with study-specific anxiety-proneness rating (aOR, 6.90; 95% CI, 2.92–16.32), physical comorbidity (aOR, 4.70; 95% CI, 2.30–9.60), acne scarring (aOR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.04–5.05), and poor treatment response (aOR, 5.06; 95% CI, 2.20–11.62). Clinician-rated severe acne was not associated with PADs after adjustment. Conclusions: In this tertiary-care sample, PADs—predominantly social phobia—were common. Associations with scarring, treatment response, physical comorbidity, and study-specific anxiety-proneness warrant confirmation in prospective multicentre studies using standardized psychosocial and treatment-response measures.
SN - 1932-6203
ER -