The frequency of skin disorders is high and they have a considerable impact on patients’ quality of life. However, there are very few public policies for this area of public health and the time devoted to studying Dermatology at medical school is limited.
Objectives
to define the most common diagnostic hypotheses and procedures in consultations performed at a primary health care unit.
Methods
medical notebooks entries were used in order to analyze variables such as age, gender, diagnosis, patient conduct and referral. Statistical analysis was performed using the program SPSS 15.0.
Results
the most frequent diagnostic hypotheses were: eczema, benign tumors, pigment disorders, onychopathy, fungal infections, bacterial infections, viral infections, acneiform and erythemato-squamous conditions.
Conclusion
the most frequent hypotheses diagnosed by a general practitioner differ greatly from those diagnosed by specialists. The results of this study should promote further discussions on dermatology teaching in Medical courses.
Teaching; Dermatology; Primary Health Care; Curriculum; Basic Health Services; Medical Education