• Michele L Ramien, Sandra Ondrejchak, Roxanne Gendron, Afshin Hatami, Catherine C McCuaig, Julie Powell, and Danielle Marcoux.
• Division of Pediatric Dermatology, Department of Pediatrics, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Division of Pediatric Rheumatology (Dermatology), Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Electronic address: michele.ramien@mail.mcgill.ca.
• J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. 2014 Nov 1;71(5):935-40.

BackgroundVisible vascular and pigmentary conditions have a negative impact on children's and adolescents' quality of life (QoL). We sought to quantitate the effect of visible skin anomalies and their camouflage on QoL.MethodsIn all, 41 patients, 5 years of age and older, were taught to use cosmetic camouflage. QoL was assessed using the Children's Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI) before and 6 months after the intervention. Satisfaction and use were evaluated after 1 and 6 months.ResultsBaseline QoL scores revealed a small impact of vascular anomalies (CDLQI score 4.2) and a small to moderate effect of pigmentary anomalies (CDLQI score 6.1). Six months after the intervention, QoL improved in the study population as a whole (CDLQI score 5.1 vs 2.1, P<.001), with significant improvements documented for facial lesions and vascular malformations. Cosmetic camouflage was well tolerated and patients with pigmentary anomalies were more likely to continue using the products.LimitationsLimitations include small study population, few male patients, cultural influences not addressed, and limited range of conditions.ConclusionsChildren and teenagers with visible vascular and pigmentary anomalies experience an impairment of QoL that is abrogated by introduction to use of cosmetic camouflage.Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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