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Sensitivity and specificity of self‐reported acne in 18‐year‐old adolescent males
Author(s) -
de Almeida Hiram,
Cecconi Josayres,
Duquia Rodrigo P.,
Souza Paulo R.,
Breunig Juliano
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
international journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-4632
pISSN - 0011-9059
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-4632.2011.05443.x
Subject(s) - acne , medicine , dermatology , scars , acne scars , epidemiology , physical examination , surgery
Background Self‐reporting is widely used in medical research. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the specificity and sensitivity of self‐reported lesions of acne (scars and active lesions) obtained by an interview with the examination carried out by a dermatologist. Methods A questionnaire was applied to male adolescents who registered for obligatory military service. After that, skin examination was carried out. Results Of the 2,191 adolescents examined, 474 (21.60%) showed acne scars, and 625 (28.51%) admitted to having scars. The sensitivity of self‐reported scars was 50.84%, and the specificity was 77.65%. The prevalence of active acne obtained by the dermatological examination was 85.76% and from self‐reported acne was 76.12%, with a sensitivity of 80.95% and a specificity of 52.88%. Neither schooling nor social class made any difference to sensitivity or specificity. Conclusions Our findings showed that sensitivity and specificity of self‐reported acne was very low, pointing out that, in a sample of adolescents, self‐reporting of acne shows itself as an inadequate instrument for epidemiological studies.