Background: Financial constraints challenge evidence of the effectiveness of dermatological inpatient management.
Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of hospitalization in atopic dermatitis and psoriasis regarding initial and sustained benefits.
Methods: Prospective study on adults with psoriasis vulgaris (n = 22) and atopic dermatitis (n = 14). At admission, discharge, and 3 months after discharge, validated outcomes of objective and subjective disease severity were assessed by trained investigators.
Results: Hospitalization resulted in substantial benefit in quality of life and clinical disease severity. Looking at mean scores, the observed benefit appeared stable until 3-month follow-up. The analysis of individual patient data revealed significant changes in disease severity between discharge and 3-month follow-up with some patients relapsing, others further improving. Reasons for hospitalization and treatment performed were not related to sustained benefit.
Conclusions: In psoriasis vulgaris and atopic dermatitis, hospitalization effectively improved quality of life and clinical disease severity. Further research should focus on prognostic factors for sustained improvement.