Psoriasis-related stigma and its intersection with intergroup bias in medical students

TO THE EDITOR: Skin disease shares a common attribute with socially devalued conditions or statuses, an association with stigma and discrimination. Stigma denotes the marking of someone as less worthy due to a specific health condition or other perceived difference such as race, gender, social status, or groupm embership. It manifests in negative emotions, attitudes, and behaviors toward holders of stigmatized statuses (enacted stigma), but it can also be internalized by those affected by adopting negative attitudes (self-stigma) or expectations of bias on part of others if the stigmatized condition becomes known (anticipated stigma). Stigma is a major barrier to provision-of-care and healthseeking behaviors across a range of health and social conditions globally. When someone is marked with multiple stigmatized conditions (stigma intersectionality), an overlapping of biases and adverse outcomes occurs.