CHILDHOOD DERMATOSIS IN A DERMATOLOGY CLINIC OF A GENERAL UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL IN SPAIN

Background and objectives. Pediatric dermatology is a relatively new subspecialty for which few epidemiological studies are available. We aimed to determine the work load associated with this subspecialty and the most common presenting complaints among pediatric patients in the general dermatology clinic of our hospital. Methods. A descriptive study was performed based on hospital records to analyze patients aged 16 years or under seen in our department in 2005 and their diagnoses. Results. Pediatric dermatology accounts for 12.1% of the work load in our department (1'329/10'998 patients were <= 16 years old). By disease groups, tumors and infections were the most common diagnoses and accounted for 55.4 % of all cases. A long way behind was eczema (15.0 %) and diseases affecting hair follicles, nails, and sweat and sebaceous glands (8.8 %). The most common individual diagnosis was melanocytic nevus (19.8 %), followed by viral warts (12.1%), atopic dermatitis (8.9 %), molluscum contagiosum (8.4 %), and acne (7.0 %). Conclusions. In most developed countries, atopic dermatitis is the most common dermatologic disease in children. In our study, however, melanocytic nevus was the most common presenting complaint, reflecting perhaps that there are more children in Spain with multiple nevi due to overexposure to sunlight or because of