Prevalence of hidradenitis suppurativa in Malta : a comparison with established epidemiological data

Abstract

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, inflammatorydisease of the pilosebaceous unit. Patients with HS pre-sent – often after a diagnostic delay – with multiple,recurrent inflammatory nodules, abscesses and sinustracts in intertriginous skin.1Data suggest that the preva-lence of HS varies between 0.14% and 4% globally(Table 1). Malta is a small Mediterranean country with an esti-mated population of 493 559 inhabitants.2The countryis in a unique position as all dermatology referrals madein the national healthcare system are received and pooledby a single dermatology centre (Sir Paul Boffa Hospital, SPBH), and distributed equally between dermatologists without bias. Follow-up care is also carried out at SPBH. We carried out a study to establish the prevalence of HS in Malta.