The prevalence of psoriasis in Trabzon

Background and Design: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease affecting nearly 2% of the population. In Turkey, the only data about the prevalence of psoriasis from a population-based study is the data of the prevalence of 0.5% in a small district in a rural area. We aimed to provide the first large-scale data in Turkey by determining the prevalence of psoriasis in a large area, in the central and outlying districts of the province of Trabzon. \udMaterials and Methods: A random sample of 7885 (4057 male and 3828 female) adults was collected by using the stratified sampling technique. The study was performed with face-to-face questionnaire administration with participants selected according to the place of residence, gender and age groups. Psoriasis was diagnosed based on the questionnaires filled by patients during these interviews. Crude psoriasis prevalence ratios and age-adjusted psoriasis prevalence ratios according to the Segi population were calculated and presented with 95% confidence interval (CI). \udResults: Of 7885 people, 87 were diagnosed with psoriasis, of which 45 were female and 42 were male. The prevalence of psoriasis was found to be 1.1% (95% CI: 0.9-1.3) in the general population. The prevalence of psoriasis in females (1.2%) was higher than that in men (1.0%). Age-adjusted prevalence was 3.9% (95% CI: 3.5-4.3) and 1.0% (95% CI: 0.8-1.2) for females and males, respectively. The presence of a family history of psoriasis increased the psoriasis risk by eight-fold (p<0.001). \udConclusion: We found that the prevalence of psoriasis was 1.1% in a large area, in the central and outlying districts of the province of Trabzon. Our study reveals that the prevalence of psoriasis in our country may be lower than that in Northern Europe and North America