title: Dermatological practice in Guadeloupe (French West Indies).
abstract: Guadeloupe is a French Caribbean island, with a population of mainly African ancestry, and a high standard of living. We recorded the dermatological diagnoses in 5000 new patients attending dermatologists. The main diagnoses were acne (16.4%), superficial mycoses (12.8%), and eczema (10.5%). Diseases considered to be specific to the tropics were scarce. The main dermatoses attributable to a tropical environment were superficial mycoses, and prurigo. Concerning ethnicity, the majority of Afro-Caribbeans and resident Caucasians visited dermatologists for the same diseases. The main difference attributable to ethnicity was a high rate of visits by Caucasians for melanocytic naevus and malignant/premalignant neoplasms. Dermatoses restricted to Afro-Caribbeans were only secondary ailments. The spectrum of diseases registered in our study was similar to that in Northern countries; this probably reflects the influence of the high standard of life in Guadeloupe.
authors.affiliation: Dermatology Department, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, French West Indies.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mahé
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mancel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D019430:Guadeloupe / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors