Prevalence of skin diseases in Iraq: a community based study

We sought to determine the prevalence of skin diseases in Iraq. Most such studies performed in Iraq have been hospital based. One community based study was performed in the southern area of Iraq but involved only an urban population. Our study was carried out in two Iraqi governorates, Tikrit and Ki...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of dermatology 2009-07, Vol.48 (7), p.734-739
Main Author: Al Samarai, Abdul Ghani Mohamed
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Child
Dermatology
Educational Status
Epidemiology
Female
General aspects
Humans
Iraq - epidemiology
Male
Medical sciences
Prevalence
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Residence Characteristics
Rural Population - statistics & numerical data
Sex Distribution
Skin Diseases - epidemiology
Socioeconomic Factors
Urban Population - statistics & numerical data
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Summary:We sought to determine the prevalence of skin diseases in Iraq. Most such studies performed in Iraq have been hospital based. One community based study was performed in the southern area of Iraq but involved only an urban population. Our study was carried out in two Iraqi governorates, Tikrit and Kirkuk, and involved 1545 randomly selected households, 829 from urban areas and 716 from rural areas. The total sample size was 8000 individuals representing a wide range of ages, 3735 (47%) males and 4268 (53%) females. The overall prevalence of skin diseases was 27%. The rate was similar in males (27%) and females (27%), and in rural (28%) compared with urban (26%) areas. Dermatitis was the most common disease category (33%) in the community based population, and skin infections (32%) in the hospital based group. Community and hospital based studies demonstrate that skin diseases represent a major public health problem which may confer significant personal and financial burdens on Iraq.
ISSN:0011-9059
1365-4632
DOI:10.1111/j.1365-4632.2009.03812.x