Epidemiological survey of foot diseases in Japan: results of 30,000 foot checks by dermatologists.
There has been no epidemiological survey of foot diseases in Japan. In this study we determined the prevalence of foot diseases, especially tinea pedis (TP) and tinea unguium (TU) in Japan. We conducted a randomized survey of outpatients who visited a dermatologist during the third week of May in 1999, 2000 and 2006. The most frequently reported condition was "fungal infection" in 8737 (40.0%) of 21 820 patients in 1999/2000, and 3848 (49.4%) of 7783 patients in 2006. The patients who visited a dermatologist for reasons other than superficial fungal infection but were diagnosed with TP or TU comprised 18.6% of the study population in 2000 and 24.1% in 2006. Of the patients with TP or TU, 63.2% used topical medication only. This survey showed that often patients are not aware of fungal infections and that their treatment is sometimes insufficient. Dermatologists should actively examine and treat patients with TP and TU.
Department of Dermatology, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Itabashi, Tokyo, Japan. watanabe@med.teikyo-u.ac.jp
Shinichi
S
Watanabe
Takashi
T
Harada
Masataro
M
Hiruma
Ken
K
Iozumi
Takuro
T
Katoh
Takashi
T
Mochizuki
Wataru
W
Naka
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D016021:Epidemiologic Studies; D005260:Female; D005534:Foot Diseases / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014009:Onychomycosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014008:Tinea Pedis / Q000453:epidemiology