Prevalence of skin disorders among psychiatric inpatients

Abstract

Introduction The interface between dermatology and psychiatry is complex and of clinical importance. Skin disorders in psychiatric inpatients are common, serious and under diagnosed. Objectives The aim of our study was to assess the prevalence and profile of several skin diseases observed in psychiatric inpatients. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study in the period from october,13 2023 to october,20 2023, among psychiatric male inpatients, hospitalized in psychiatry B department of the Hedi Chaker University Hospital (Sfax, Tunisia). We collected sociodemographic and clinical data using a pre-established form. Results Over a period of a week, 35 patients were included in our study. The mean age of patients was 39,97 years. Among them, 80% were single and 14,3% were married. Addictive behaviors were reported in 74,3% of cases. The level of hygiene was good in 74,3% of patients. The three most common psychiatric diagnoses were schizophrenia (31,4%), followed by bipolar disorder (28,6%) and schizoaffective disorder (25,7%). We recorded 13 cases of skin diseases (37,2% of patients). Dermatological lesions were dominated by traumatic origin in 14,3% of cases. They were of infectious origin in 11,4% of cases, immunoallergic in 8,6% and parasitic in 2.9%. Conclusions The prevalence of skin diseases is high in psychiatric inpatients, for whom proper skin care is necessary to improve their quality of life. Disclosure of Interest None Declared