Prevalence of skin disease in a population‐based sample of adults from five European countries3. (30th March 2018) - Svensson, A.
Summary: Background: There is a lack of prevalence data on skin diseases in the general adult population; most studies have been carried out in small, national or consecutive clinical samples. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of common skin disease in the general European population and to assess differences in the characteristics of treatment between countries. Methods: A random sample consisting of 12 377 participants aged 18–74 years was drawn from the general population of five European countries (Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden). This was a cross‐sectional study and all participants were interviewed using a standardized questionnaire that assessed the occurrence of 10 common skin diseases during lifetime, past year and past month. If a skin disease was reported, we additionally assessed who performed the diagnosis and treatment, and whether drugs had been prescribed. Results: The most common skin disease was warts (41·3%), followed by acne (19·2%) and contact dermatitis (15·0%). In general, women were more often affected by skin diseases compared with men; only skin cancer had a slightly higher prevalence in men. The prevalence of skin diseases in northern countries (Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden) was generally higher than in the southern countries (Italy and Portugal). In the Netherlands the treatment of skin diseases was less often performed by a dermatologist compared with the other countries. Conclusions: The prevalence estimates reported in this study are derived from a representative sample of the general population. Data assessment was performed comprehensively across countries, thus country‐specific prevalence estimates are comparable. Abstract : What's already known about this topic? There is a substantive prevalence of skin diseases in the general adult population. There is a lack of comparable prevalence estimates across countries. What does this study add ? We report prevalence estimates for 10 common skin diseases based on a validated questionnaire. Data were assessed in the general adult population of five European countries based on a random sample derived from the regional register of residents. Prevalence rates for skin diseases are generally higher in the northern countries. Linked Editorial: Thyssen. Br J Dermatol 2018;178 :991 . Plain language summary available online Respond to this article