INPATIENT DERMATOLOGY

Abstract

Skin diseases needing medical attention affect more than a quarter of Americans.3 Office visits for which the primary complaint is a dermatologic problem constitute 6% to 22% of all patient visits depending on which type of physician is surveyed; when adding secondary dermatologic complaints, this percentage increases significantly.16 Dermatologists are specialists in the care of skin, hair, nails, and mucosal diseases and are skilled in the diagnosis and treatment of cutaneous disorders. Dermatologists have been found to be superior in diagnosis and management of skin diseases compared with other physicians.1, 3, 14, 16 When patients have the most severe skin disease, dermatologists often relegate the primary care of such patients to nondermatologists. Inpatient dermatology is a subspecialty of medical dermatology, which is currently in peril in the United States.17 For complicated or severe medical dermatologic problems, generalists have assumed a greater role. Physicians other than dermatologists undertake a significant amount of dermatologic care, and the role of the dermatologist for these types of patients may be diminishing. This article studies inpatient dermatology, defines the current situation as it affects the United States, and proposes a plan to prevent the loss of this subspecialty of medical dermatology.

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