Page 7 - LECTURE NOTES

UNIT ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction

The importance of skin disease is usually over looked. However; dermatological
conditions and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are highly prevalent in Africa

including our country and some of the conditions are on the rise. The HIV/AIDS

pandemic, changing life style of the societies, increasing use of industrial chemicals,
global warming and more are incriminated as the contributing factors for the rise in the

prevalence of some skin diseases. Some 90% of patients with HIV/AIDS will have one

or more dermatological manifestations at early stage of the disease. In some centers,
28% of medical and 25% of pediatrics cases have dermatological problems. On the

other hand, little changes have been made to tackle the problems.

Although most of the dermatological conditions do not result in death, they lead to
misery and incapacitations. The quality of life in this group of patients is compromised

in different ways. Apart from the morbidity that is usually chronic, patients face a lot of

agony from social stigma and low self-esteem due to deformities and disabilities of
various degrees. For one or more of the reasons they become unproductive and live

in poverty of a deeper degree.

Despite the extent of the problem, dermatology service delivery in our country has
remained poor. Some of the reasons are poverty, lack of trained staff and lack of

knowledge.

The intent of this module is to highlight the Health Officers, Nurses, Medical
Laboratory Technicians and Environmental Health Technicians with the diagnosis,

management, control, and prevention of common dermatological conditions in our

setting.

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