A study on pattern of diseases of skin and subcutaneous tissue

Abstract

Background: Skin the largest organ in the human body plays a vital role in one's health care. This anatomical barrier regulates the body temperature and interface with the environment for protecting the body against pathogens. The type of skin problems varies in different geographical areas, climate, economic and other factors including personal characteristics such as age and sex. Objectives: The main objective of this study is to find out the age and sex wise distribution of diseases of skin and subcutaneous tissue during the study period of 5 years. Materials and Methods: It is a hospital based retrospective study of 5 years. Hospital Medical records department follows the guidelines of WHO ICD 10 for the classification of diseases. The data were collected from the medical records and analyzed by using Microsoft excel. 'Z' test was applied for finding out the comparison of proportions. Result: Out of 4276 patients admitted in the hospital during the study period, 2518 (58.88%) were males and 1758 (41.12%) were females. 0-15 years have highest skin problems (31.7%) compared to other age groups. The age groups 15-30 years ( P = 0.001), 45-60 years ( P = 0.003) shows significant difference between males and females in skin diseases. Infective type is more common, it is 63.21% and non-infective type is 36.79%. Conclusion: The present study shows the preponderance of males and 0-15 year's age group. Infectious types are more common type compared to non-infective type. Infective types are higher in poor hygiene and insanitary conditions. Public awareness regarding personal and healthy living is necessary to reduce the burden of skin disease and for improved quality of life.