Is My Skin Affecting My Life? (DLQI)
Take the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), the most widely used skin quality of life questionnaire worldwide. 10 questions covering symptoms, daily activities, leisure, work, relationships, and treatment burden. Scores range from no effect to extremely large effect. Instant results.
Before You Start
- This is a screening tool, not a diagnostic test
- All answers are processed in your browser only
- No data is stored or sent to any server
- Results can be copied to share with your clinician
What Is the DLQI?
The Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) is the most widely used quality of life measure in dermatology, developed at Cardiff University by Professors Andrew Finlay and Gul Karim Khan. Since its publication in 1994, it has been used in over 40 skin conditions and translated into more than 90 languages. The DLQI measures how much your skin condition has affected your life over the past week across six domains: symptoms and feelings, daily activities, leisure, work and school, personal relationships, and treatment.
When Should You Take This Test?
The DLQI is useful any time you want to understand how your skin condition is affecting your daily life. Dermatologists commonly use DLQI scores to guide treatment decisions — a score above 10 is often used as a threshold for considering systemic therapy in conditions like psoriasis and eczema. Taking this screening before an appointment can help you communicate the real impact of your condition and ensure your concerns are heard.
How the DLQI Is Scored
Each of the 10 questions is scored from 0 (not at all) to 3 (very much), giving a total between 0 and 30. Scores of 0–1 indicate no effect on quality of life, 2–5 a small effect, 6–10 a moderate effect, 11–20 a very large effect, and 21–30 an extremely large effect. A change of 4 or more points is considered clinically meaningful, making the DLQI useful for tracking treatment progress over time.
What Your Score Means
Your DLQI score provides an objective measure of how your skin condition impacts your life that you can share with your dermatologist or GP. Higher scores indicate greater impact and may support the case for more active treatment. Remember, quality of life matters — even conditions that appear mild to others can significantly affect how you feel and function day to day.