The High Prevalence of Skin Diseases in Adults Aged 70 and Older.
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES
To determine the prevalence of skin findings and skin diseases in adults aged 70 and older, and to study the association between cutaneous diseases and socioeconomic status (SES), sex, and living status in the older population.


DESIGN
Cross-sectional study of Finnish adults aged 70 to 93 as part of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 Study.


SETTINGS
Skin examination data were available for 552 adults.


MEASUREMENTS
A whole-body skin examination was performed by dermatologists. The associations between skin diseases and SES, sex, and living status were analyzed.


RESULTS
Nearly 80% of the adults had at least one skin disease that required further treatment or follow-up. More than one-third of the study cases (39.1%) had three or more simultaneous skin diseases. Skin diseases were more common in men than in women (P < .001). The most common skin diseases were tinea pedis (48.6%), onychomycosis (29.9%), rosacea (25.6%), actinic keratosis (22.3%), and asteatotic eczema (20.8%). Some association was found between skin diseases and SES and living status.


CONCLUSION
A whole-body clinical skin examination is important because it reveals important diagnoses.
['Sinikumpu|Suvi-Päivikki|SP|', 'Jokelainen|Jari|J|', 'Haarala|Anna K|AK|', 'Keränen|Maija-Helena|MH|', 'Keinänen-Kiukaanniemi|Sirkka|S|', 'Huilaja|Laura|L|']
D000368:Aged D000369:Aged, 80 and over D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies D003880:Dermatology D005260:Female D005387:Finland D006801:Humans D008137:Longitudinal Studies D008297:Male D012871:Skin Diseases D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
skin diseases birth cohort epidemiology older adults skin tumors