Patient-reported burden of skin disorders in coeliac disease

Figures & data

Table 1. Demographic and background data on coeliac disease patients and non-coeliac controls at the time of the study.

	CD patients n = 327^a n	%	Non-CD controls n = 382 n	%	p Value
Age, median (range)	55	18–86	57	19–84	0.064
Females	252	77	303	79	0.468
Diabetes^b	26	8	26	7	0.560
Thyroid disease	53	16	45	12	0.089
Cerebrovascular disease	12	4	8	2	0.207
Coronary heart disease	10	3	6	2	0.184
Hypercholesterolemia	57	17	76	20	0.402
Cancer^c	25	8	32	8	0.730
Number of long-term illnesses, median (range)	1	0–9	1	0–9	0.145
Number of prescription medication used, median (range)	1	0–20	1	0–13	0.229
Number of over-the-counter medications used, median (range)	1	0–10	0	0–13	0.001
Current smoker	23	7	44	12	0.037
BMI, median (range), kg/m^2	25	18–43	26	17–64	0.228
Family history of skin diseases	121	37	123	32	0.153

CD: coeliac disease; BMI: body mass index.

^aIncluding 22 patients diagnosed with dermatitis herpetiformis.

^bDiabetes type I and II.

^cIncluding all cancer types reported by the patient, also skin cancers.

Table 2. Odds Ratios and 95% confidence intervals for reported skin diseases in coeliac disease patients compared to non-coeliac controls and skin disease frequencies reported in previous studies.

	CD patients n = 327	%	Non-CD controls n = 382	%	OR	95% CI	Previously reported frequencies %
Any skin disease^a	113	35	132	35	1.0	0.7–1.4	43 [31]
Atopic dermatitis	45	14	49	13	1.1	0.7–1.7	25– 30 [32]
Acne	27	8	34	9	0.9	0.5–1.6	9 [33]
Rosacea	17	5	18	5	1.1	0.6–2.2	5.5 [34]
Psoriasis	13	4	11	3	1.4	0.6–3.2	1.5–3.9 [31,35]
Alopecia areata	7	2	5	1	1.6	0.5–5.2	5.1 [31]
Vitiligo	7	2	7	2	1.2	0.4–3.4	0.5–2 [36]
Chronic urticaria	5	2	12	3	0.5	0.2–1.4	1.0 [31]

CD: coeliac disease; OR: odds ratio; CI: confidence interval.

^aIncluding skin diseases listed in the table and all others reported by the study patients.

Table 3. Changes in the severity of skin disease after initiation of gluten-free diet in coeliac disease patients^a.

		Improvement^b
	Number of CD patients	n	%
Atopic dermatitis	41	23	56
Acne	23	8	35
Rosacea	12	6	50
Psoriasis	11	3	27
Alopecia areata	7	3	43
Vitiligo	6	0	0
Chronic urticaria	5	2	40

CD: coeliac disease.

^aIncluding only patients diagnosed with skin diseases before coeliac disease diagnosis.

^bPatients reporting partial or complete response in skin symptoms during gluten-free diet.

Richard MA, Paul C, Nijsten T, et al. Prevalence of most common skin diseases in Europe: a population-based study. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2022;36(7):1088–1096. doi: 10.1111/jdv.18050.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Atopic eczema. Current Care Guidelines. Working group set up by the Finnish Medical Society Duodecim, Finnish Dermatological Society and Finnish Association for General Practice. Helsinki: The Finnish Medical Society Duodecim; 2023. (referred June 24, 2023). Available from: www.kaypahoito.fi

 Google Scholar

Tan JK, Bhate K. A global perspective on the epidemiology of acne. Br J Dermatol. 2015;172:3–12. doi: 10.1111/bjd.13462.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Gether L, Overgaard LK, Egeberg A, et al. Incidence and prevalence of rosacea: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Dermatol. 2018;179(2):282–289. doi: 10.1111/bjd.16481.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Current Care Guidelines. Working group set up by the Finnish Medical Society Duodecim, Finnish Dermatological Society and Finnish Society for Rheumatology. Helsinki: The Finnish Medical Society Duodecim; 2023. (referred June 24, 2023). Available from: www.kaypahoito.fi

 Google Scholar

Bergqvist C, Ezzedine K. Vitiligo: a review. Dermatology. 2020;236(6):571–592. doi: 10.1159/000506103.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to Finnish legislation concerning patient-related data.