Prevalence of skin diseases among the elderly and their impact on the quality of life
R ElMakhzangy
Alexandria University, Egypt
: J Clin Exp Dermatol Res
Abstract
Management of dermatoses in older populations has emerged as an important area of consideration today and many skin diseases have been demonstrated to result in significant stress and impairment in the quality of life. The present study included 250 patients, the age range was from 60-85 years old with a mean age of 64.9±4.0. Eczema was the leading disease group (24.4%) followed by psoriasis (12.4%) and fungal infections (12.0%). Regarding the quality of life, patients were assessed using the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) questionnaire. More than half of the study sample (55.6%) showed very large effect of the skin disease on their quality of life and 34.4% were moderately affected. The DLQI had a mean of 11.2±4.1, median of 11.0 and range of (0-26). Large impact on the quality of life of the study sample was higher among males represented by 59.2% versus 53.1% for females. Also, large impact on the quality of life of the study sample was found to be the highest among those suffering from psoriasis and eczema represented by 83.8% and 75.4% respectively. It was also reported that patients suffering from xerosis, psoriasis, fungal infections and eczema reported increase in the flare of the disease in winter. Also, large impact on the quality of life of the study sample was observed in more than half of those taking four or more medications.
Biography
E-mail: ronyibrahim13@hotmail.com
