Determining the prevalence of infectious skin disorders encountered in children: Prospective observational assessment

Abstract

Background: Infectious skin disorders (ISDs) are commonly seen in pediatric emergency departments (PED), however the exact frequency is unknown. Skin infections in pediatric age group have a different clinical course and treatment as compared to adult, so it is studied separately as Pediatric dermatology. Aim: The present study aims to determine the prevalence and types of infectious skin disorders (ISDs) seen among children attending the Department of Dermatology, Chandulal Chandrakar Memorial Medical College, Durg, Chhattisgarh, India.Methods: This is a prospective study; various dermatoses were studied in pediatric patients up to 14 years of age over a period of 1 year. All patients were divided into four different study groups: 1 to 6 years and 7 to 14 years.Results: Among the 600 pediatric skin infection patients, bacterial infections (210, 35%) were highest in number followed by fungal (198, 33%) and viral infections (54, 9%). Of the bacterial infections, impetigo was the predominant one contributing to 134(22.33%) cases. Other bacterial infections were furunculosis (64, 10.67%) and pyogenic abscess (12, 2%).Dermatophytosis (102, 17%) attributed the major bulk of cases of fungal infections. Pityriasis versicolor (20, 3.33%) and candidiasis (76, 12.67%) were the other superficial fungal infections recorded in the study. Most prevalent viral infection was Molluscum contagiosum (33, 5.5%) followed by wart (12, 2%) and pityriasis rosea (9, 1.5%). Scabies (96, 16%) and pediculosis (42, 7%) were the two entities in the infestation group. Conclusion: Our data reveal the extremely high frequency of ISDs seen at the PED, underlying the need for closer cooperation between dermatologists and pediatricians.