BRIEF REPORTS Pattern of Pediatric Dermatoses in a Referral Center in South India

This study was undertaken to determine the pattern of dermatoses in children in south India. All children <14 years presenting to us between May 2001 and June 2002 were recruited. A total of 2100 children (males-995; females- 1105) with 2144 dermatoses were recorded. Infections and infestations were the most common dermatoses (54.5%) followed by dermatitis and eczema (8.6%), pigmentary disorders (5.7%), insect bite reaction (5.27%), hair and nail disorders (5.2%), miliaria (4.1%), nutritional deficiency disorders (2.8%), urticaria (2.5%), genetic disorders (2.1%), psoriasis (1.4%), collagen vascular disorders (0.5%), hemangiomas (0.5%), drug eruptions (0.3%), pityriasis rosea (0.2%) and others (5.8%). Pyodermas were the most common dermatoses (47.13%) followed by scabies (30.6%) amongst infections and infestations. Atopic dermatitis was noticed only in 3 patients. Insect bite reactions (papular urticaria) (5.27%) and miliaria (4.1%) were attributed to the tropical weather conditions in this coastal area. Genetic disorders including ichthyosis and palmoplantar keratoderma contributed to 2.1 % of cases and could be due to the high incidence of consanguinous marriages in this society. Key words: Children, Dermatoses, South India. climate of this region is typical of a tropical area with high temperature and humidity. All children, 14 years and below, attending the dermatology out-patient department with any dermatoses between the period of May 2001 and June 2002 were enrolled in the study. The diagnosis was made by a dermatologist based on detailed history, clinical features and appropriate investigations such as KOH examination, Tzanck test, Gram’s stained smear, hematological and biochemical investigations, skiagrams, VDRL test, skin biopsy etc. The diseases were tabulated based on the etiology and results were analyzed