Prevalence and cutaneous comorbidities of hidradenitis suppurativa in the German working population

Abstract

The association of hidradenitis suppurativa with other skin diseases has not yet been investigated in larger studies based on dermatological exams. The objectives of this study are to determine the prevalence and cutaneous comorbidities of hidradenitis suppurativa in the German working population. Between 2014 and 2017, 20,112 people in 343 German companies were examined for the presence of clinical features of hidradenitis suppurativa within the framework of a cross-sectional epidemiological study based on whole-body examinations. In addition, all cutaneous comorbidities were recorded. Point prevalence was calculated and the differences between individuals with and without hidradenitis suppurativa were determined by bivariate analysis. All statistical procedures were performed using SPSS 23.0 for Windows. Of 20,112 people examined, mean age was 43.6 ± 10.5 years; 52.3% were male. In total, n = 57 people (0.3%) with hidradenitis suppurativa were identified; 61.4% (n = 35) being male. In addition, non-inflammatory hidradenitis suppurativa-related lesions were found in 674 other individuals. In a bivariate comparison, patients with hidradenitis suppurativa showed significantly more frequently the following cutaneous comorbidities: acne vulgaris, psoriasis, seborrhoeic dermatitis, excoriations, and folliculitis. We determined a point prevalence of hidradenitis suppurativa of 0.3%. Since we have examined the working population, the healthy worker effect, which could have led to underestimation of prevalence, cannot be ruled out. The point prevalence of 0.3% for employed people in Germany and a prevalence of 3.0% for inflammatory and non-inflammatory hidradenitis suppurativarelated lesions show that hidradenitis suppurativa is an important disease for the whole health system.

Epidemiology of skin diseases in Germany: systematic review of the current state of research – part 2: non‐infectious skin diseases

“…Hidradenitis suppurativa : One publication investigated the point prevalence rate of hidradenitis suppurativa in employed persons. No significant age‐dependent differences in prevalence were observed [6]. Another report collected statutory health insurance data concerning the frequency of hidradenitis suppurativa [9].…”

“…Study results seen in specific age groups do not allow definite conclusions for other age groups. Finally, five of the included studies referred only to employed persons and thus may not be applicable to people unable to work, unemployed people, children, or retired persons [2,6,7,10,35].…”

“…Decimal points are stated according to the respective publications. 1 employed persons aged 16-70 years, 2 adults aged up to 74 years, 3 first-graders, 4 age-standardized, 5 children aged 5-6 and 9-10 ear, 6 adults aged 18-79 years, 7 adults aged 50-74 years, 8 adolescents aged 16-20 years, 9 adults aged 45-75 years, 10 adults aged 18 years and above, 11 adults aged 18-65 years.…”

Epidemiologie von Hautkrankheiten in Deutschland: systematische Literaturanalyse des aktuellen Forschungsstands – Teil 2: nichtinfektiöse Hauterkrankungen

“…Hidradenitis suppurativa : In einer Publikation wurde die Punktprävalenzrate der Hidradenitis suppurativa bei Berufstätigen untersucht. Es zeigten sich keine wesentlichen altersabhängigen Prävalenzunterschiede [6]. In einer weiteren Arbeit wurden Krankenkassendaten bezüglich der Häufigkeit der Hidradenitis suppurativa untersucht [9].…”

“…Auf spezifische Altersgruppen bezogene Studienergebnisse erlauben keine sicheren Rückschlüsse für andere Altersgruppen. Überdies bezogen sich fünf der eingeschlossenen Arbeiten lediglich auf Berufstätige und sind somit nicht übertragbar auf Arbeitsunfähige, Arbeitslose, Kinder und Rentner [2, 6, 7, 10, 35].…”