AAD Updates 2004 Burden of Skin Disease Study

The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) has released an updated report to the 2004 study of burden of skin disease. The report was presented by Marta Van Beek, MD, MPH, at the 2017 AAD Summer Meeting this past weekend.

According to the AAD report, the total cost of skin disease in the United States in 2013 was $75 billion. However, the burden of skin disease extends beyond financial burden and can be affected by multiple conditions, age, and efficiencies in care.
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The update lists 24 common skin disease diagnoses treated by dermatologists and non-dermatologists. According to Dr Van Beek, the most common diseases were non-cancerous and included skin growths, cutaneous infections, viral and fungal diseases, wounds and burns, contact dermatitis, and actinic damage. The least prevalent diseases were bullous diseases, cutaneous lymphoma, and vitiligo. Additionally, the average number of skin diseases per patient in the general population is 1.6, meaning that each patient often has more than 1 skin diagnosis.

The risk for skin disease increases with age, according to the report. A range of 20% to 24% of patients younger than age 64 years have skin disease, whereas 48% of patients aged 65 years or older have skin disease. This risk increases with age because of a lifetime of sunlight exposure.

The report also indicated a need for continued insurance coverage of costs associated with skin disease and for continued investments in skin disease research. These factors may affect future care for skin disease, the development of new care delivery models for dermatology, and patient accessibility to care.

“Information from the Burden of Skin Disease project will inform the efforts of the Academy to advocate for our dermatology members by ensuring that we have the tools and resources to provide the best care for the patients we serve every day,” Dr Van Beek said.

—Christina Vogt

Reference:

Special report: the growing burden of skin disease [press release]. New York, NY. American Academy of Dermatology. https://aadmeetingnews.org/2017-summer-meeting-dailies/special-report-the-growing-burden-of-skin-disease/. Accessed on July 31, 2017.