ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The incidence of scabies in Korea decreased during the past 20 years. This might have been due to improved personal hygiene and public sanitation. Recently, however, not only the incidence of scabies, but also delayed or missed diagnosis, is likely to increase again. OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to obtain a better understanding of the clinical characteristics of recent scabietic patients. METHODS: We reviewed the medical records and clinical photographs of 27 outpatients who had been diagnosed with scabies in our department between August 2006 and August 2008. We investigated personal and clinical information, including age, sex, onset, past history and clinical manifestations. RESULTS: Of the 27 patients, 14 (51.9%) were female and 13 (48.1%) were male. Their ages ranged from 4 to 93 years (mean=47.2 years). Over half (51.9%) of the patients had been misdiagnosed at private hospitals. The average time from symptom presentation to diagnosis was 68 days. The most common site of skin lesions was the lower abdomen (77.8%), and the most common primary lesion was erythematous papules (96.3%). Atypical cases of scabies were as follows: 7 nodular scabies (25.9%), 1 crusted scabies (3.7%) and 4 scabies incognito (14.8%). CONCLUSION: Currently, atypical cases of scabies may be increasing and frequently misdiagnosed. We suggest that dermatologists should suspect scabies for any patient who presents with pruritus that is persistent or resistant to treatment.