How are solar keratoses treated by general practitioners in Australia?

This study aimed to obtain clinical and economic information about patterns of treatment of solar keratoses (SKs) by general practitioners in Australia. The study design was a retrospective survey relating to the treatment of patients presenting to their doctor with previously untreated SKs.

Data were collected between May and June 2000, from a sample of doctors who were asked to randomly select two SK patients from their medical records and complete a self-administered postal questionnaire. Information about treatment types, number of visits, treatment complications, and specialist referrals were directly extracted from the patient records.

A total of 156 patients were recruited to the study (61% male) who had been treated for a total of 251 SKs (average 1.6 lesions/patient). The most common treatment employed was cryotherapy (63%). Excision was also commonly used (18%). Five per cent of patients were treated with a mixture of excision and cryotherapy. Topical agents were not commonly employed. Of those patients who consulted a doctor, 9% were referred to a specialist for diagnosis or treatment, of which 57% were referred to a dermatologist.

The typical number of doctor visits varied from 1.9 to 4.6 with a range of cost per patient of 55.13-249.70 Australian dollars depending on complexity of the case and the need for referral.