Patterns of Skin Diseases Diagnosed on Biopsies in Jordan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35516/jmj.v60i2.4178Keywords:
skin diseases, skin biopsy, skin cancers, skin clinical patternsAbstract
Background: Although skin diseases are common among Jordanian adults, there is insufficient data on the distribution of skin diseases confirmed by biopsies, and most previous studies in Jordan are based on clinical diagnosis with no collaboration on the corresponding biopsy results.
Objectives: To determine the different patterns and diagnoses of skin diseases confirmed by skin biopsies in the Jordanian population and their distribution according to demographic variables. To assess for the common types of skin cancer in Jordan
Methods: This retrospective study includes skin biopsy specimens received from January 2022 to December 2023 at the Department of Pathology, King Abdullah University Hospital.
The histopathological diagnoses and demographic data were collected and summarized in a Microsoft Excel sheet. Data was analyzed using descriptive and graphical statistical methods. Continuous variables were summarized using means and standard deviations (SD), categorical variables were presented as frequencies and percentages. All analyses and figures were performed using R statistical software (Vienna, Austria).
Results: A diverse cohort of 1,184 patients, with a mean age of 45 years was retrieved. The most common clinical presentations are papules (33.37%) and plaques (32.92%). Malignancies were identified in 10.48% of cases with a predominance of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) (5.49%), and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) (3.13%), Notably, seborrheic keratosis (22.80%) and warts (14.36%) were the most frequent benign lesions, which are often clinically misidentified, emphasizing the role of histopathology for definitive diagnosis. Histopathologically, benign tumors constituted the largest category (19.51%), followed by eczema (14.48%) and pigmentary disorders (14.40%).
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