Distribution of childhood skin diseases according to age and gender, a single institution experience

Aim: Studies on pediatric skin diseases in Turkey are not yet sufficient. It was aimed to characterize the prevalence of skin diseases, age and gender distribution in children living in the Erzincan region. Material and Methods: 10,115 children aged 0-16 years who reached to our outpatient clinic between 01.11.2014 and 30.11.2016 were included in the study. The frequency, age and gender distribution of the skin diseases were examined. The cases were divided into 4 groups; infantile period (0-2 years), preschool period (3-5 years), school period (6-11 years) and adolescence period (12-16 years). Skin diseases were categorized in 10 groups. A total of 148 skin diseases were identified. Results: 5376 of the patients were female (%53.14) and 4739 were male (%46.86). The most common disease groups are; infectious diseases (24.62%), eczema (21.95%), acne&follicular diseases (18.45%) and allergic skin diseases (11.02%). The most common diseases were acne vulgaris (17.82%), warts (10.03%) and irritant contact dermatitis (9.42%). The most common skin diseases in regard of different age groups are ; contact dermatitis in the 0-2 years and 3-5 years age groups, warts in the 6-11 years age group, and acne vulgaris in 12-16 years age group. Conclusion: Most common diseases in our study are diseases that can be reduced by preventive health care and health education programs. There is a need for broad-based epidemiological studies in this area to establish preventive health care policies and to develop education programs.