Abstract
Currently, out-patient care is the traditional approach for the management of patients with psoriasis. However, some patients still require hospitalization. The aim of this study was to assess the main reasons for hospitalization of psoriasis patients. Data are presented from a retrospective study performed in a single centre over a 15-year period (1990-2005). Hospitalizations of psoriasis patients were identified using the coding L 40.X from the CM10 (out-patients were excluded). For each hospitalization, the following details were recorded: age, sex, associated disorders, mean length of stay, number of re-hospitalizations, clinical type of psoriasis (vulgaris, pustular or erythrodermic), onset factors and treatments. One hundred and twenty-two patients corresponding to 211 hospitalizations were included in this study. Two distinct patient populations could be identified. The first consisted of patients with chronic psoriasis vulgaris (143/211 hospitalizations, 67.8%), chiefly male (n=95, sex-ratio=1.98, p=0.001), alcoholic in 47/95 hospitalizations, 49.5% (p=0.004) and requiring frequent re-hospitalization. The second consisted of patients with acute forms of psoriasis, either pustular (38/211 hospitalizations, 18%) or erythrodermic (30/211 hospitalizations, 14.2%). Most of these patients were female (sex-ratio=0.66) and the onset of their psoriasis was sometimes triggered by an infection (7/38 hospitalizations, 18% of psoriasis pustular, p=0.16) or intake of a new drug (6/30 hospitalizations, 20% of erythrodermic psoriasis, p=0.007). Hospitalization in acute care hospitals is not often used in the management of patients with psoriasis. Hospitalizations concern two different populations: the first with chronic psoriasis vulgaris and commonly associated disorders (alcohol abuse), and the second with acute forms of psoriasis, namely pustular and erythrodermic.
Published Version
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