The Clinical Characteristics of Inpatients: An Audit in the Department of Dermatology Hospital Kuala Lumpur Between 2016 and 2020

ABSTRACT

Background@#Although Dermatology is primarily a non-acute, outpatient-centered clinical specialty, some of them require in-patient care for intensive skin management. We aim to describe the demographic data, clinical characteristics, and outcomes of Dermatology inpatients in Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL).@*Methods@#This is a retrospective study on all dermatology inpatients in HKL between 2016 and 2020. Data was obtained from admission records and further analyzed.@*Results@#A total of 1567 patients were admitted to the Dermatology ward between 2016 and 2020 accounted for 2292 admissions. The mean age was 45 years (range 8-93). The male to female ratio was 1.161. The majority were Malaysian (99.2%). Most Malaysian were Malays (60%) followed by Chinese (19.3%) and Indian (17.1%). About 91% of the admissions were arranged from the dermatology clinic. The mean length of stay was 5.06 days (range 0-63). About 20% of the patients required multiple admissions. The main dermatological diagnosis requiring inpatient care were non-infective dermatoses (60.4%) which included eczematous dermatoses, autoimmune dermatoses, psoriasis, cutaneous adverse drug reactions, inflammatory and non-inflammatory dermatoses. This was followed by cutaneous infections (24.5%) and drug allergy testing & drug provocation tests (7.9%). About 3% of patients were transferred to other departments for further intensive management, and the rest were discharged home well. No mortality occurred in the Dermatology ward.@*Conclusion@#The Dermatology ward HKL managed 2292 admissions between 2016 and 2020. The three main dermatological diagnoses requiring intensive skin management were eczematous conditions, cutaneous infections, and autoimmune dermatoses.