Urgent Consultations at the Dermatology Department of Basel University Hospital, Switzerland: Characterisation of Patients and Setting - A 12-Month Study with 2,222 Patients Data and Review of the Literature

Background: Urgent consultations for skin disorders are commonly done in different settings. Scarce data exist about the characteristics of these patients. Objective: The aim of this study was to analyse specific characteristics of patients receiving an urgent consultation at a dermatology department in a university hospital. Methods: We prospectively recorded the data of all patients having had an urgent consultation during a period of 12 months. Results: We registered 2,222 urgent consultations. The most frequent diagnoses were eczennas (24.8%), dermatomycoses (5.1%) and dermatitis not otherwise specified (4.8%). The most frequent treatments were topical steroids, emollients, topical antibiotics, systemic antihistamines, antibiotics and virostatics. 2.2% of patients were hospitalized, 78.8% asked for a consultation for a disease lasting less than 4 weeks, and 6.9% presented the same day as the skin disease appeared. Conclusions:This study shows the characteristics of patients receiving an urgent dermatologic consultation. It underlines the need for collaboration between dermatologists, other physicians, general practitioners and nurses. (C) 2014 S. Karger AG, Basel