title: Paederus dermatitis in Southeastern Anatolia, Turkey: a report of 57 cases.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Paederus dermatitis (PD), which is an irritant contact dermatitis, is common throughout the world and caused by rove beetles.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the clinical features of PD and the level of knowledge of patients from the city of Batman and surrounding areas who presented with the condition.
  
  
  METHODS
  We describe 57 patients who presented to our dermatology clinic in the city of Batman between May 2011 and October 2011. Sociodemographic data were collected for all the patients, and their level of knowledge about the disease was assessed with a detailed questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifty-seven patients, of whom 36 (63%) were men and 21 (37%) were women, were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 24.2 years. The peak time of presentation was August. The neck and the chest were the most common sites of involvement. Clinically, the most common presentation consisted of papulo-pustules on an erythematous base. The most frequent complaints were burning and stinging sensations (66.7%). Only three patients (5%) thought that contact with insects could lead to the disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PD is an important public health problem when it is seen epidemically. The public's awareness about the cause of the disease is very low. Knowledge about the clinical features of PD and the emergence of epidemics will prevent misdiagnosis by physicians. Increasing the level of knowledge of people about the cause of the disease and about the behavioural patterns of the insect are important in terms of disease prevention.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, Harran University , Sanliurfa , Turkey.
authors.forename: Enver
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Turan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D001517:Coleoptera; D017453:Dermatitis, Irritant / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011714:Pyrans / Q000633:toxicity*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014118:Toxins, Biological / Q000633:toxicity*; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D011714:Pyrans; D014118:Toxins, Biological; C100127:pederin
keywords: Contact dermatitis; Paederus; Southeastern Anatolia; rove beetle