Background:

The geriatric population is composed of persons aged 65 years and above. Skin disorders are an important source of morbidity in elderly patients.

Material and Methods:

The aim of this study was to determine the spectrum and frequency of skin disorders among Libyan elderly patients. Over one year 248 elderly patients with dermatologic complaints attending Jumhoria Hospital in Benghazi-Libya dermatology clinics were enrolled in our study; the majority of patients (65.3%) were found to be in the age group of 65 to 75 years.

Results:

67 percent of the patients had skin diseases of infective etiology. Fungal infections (49.6 %) were the most common. Xerosis was observed in 40%. Eczematous dermatitis was seen in 27.8%. Psoriasis was present in 7.7%, generalized pruritus in 6% and psychosomatic background in 3.2 % of the cases. Malignant tumors were seen in 2.4%.

Conclusion:

This study provides important data on the spectrum of dermatologic diseases in Libyan geriatric patients and to the best of our knowledge this is the first study carried out on geriatric dermatoses in Libya.

Keywords: Skin disease, Libyan elderly