Eighty-three million of these visits were in response to a single dermatologic problem. Only 5.8 percent of these patients were referred to a dermatologist. Referrals were common in all age groups, and slightly higher for female patients vs. male patients. The most common reasons for referrals were common skin disorders such as dermatitis, warts and cysts. These frequent conditions alone accounted for 24 percent of referrals.
Dermatologic problems are common and well recognized by patients.
Generally, few laboratory tests or expensive procedures are performed in the care of patients with skin disease, and common skin disorders are generally not life-threatening. This impression does not take into account the complexity of diagnosing skin conditions, the cost-effectiveness of treatment once a specific diagnosis is made, and the level of disability that skin disease causes, a level quantitatively similar to the disabilities associated with other medical conditions. Referrals for skin disease are more common than referrals for other medical conditions. Previous studies have documented the higher quality of skin disease management offered by dermatologists. It has long been assumed that higher quality care is more costly.