Finger nail pitting in psoriasis and its relation with different variables

Area of Science:

• Dermatology
• Epidemiology
• Clinical Medicine

Background:

• Nail pitting is a known manifestation of psoriasis, but its incidence and correlation with disease parameters require further investigation.
• Toe nail examination for pitting is clinically inconvenient.
• Existing studies inadequately address the relationship between nail pitting and psoriasis duration or severity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the incidence of finger nail pitting across all types of cutaneous psoriasis.
• To investigate the association between finger nail pitting and psoriasis duration and severity.

Main Methods:

• A clinico-epidemiological study involving 621 psoriasis patients and 350 controls.
• Clinical examination of finger nails during daytime.
• Assessment of disease severity using the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI).
• Statistical analysis performed using Microcomputer statistics software (MSTAT).

Main Results:

• Finger nail pitting was observed in 37% of psoriasis patients compared to 10% in the control group.
• Pitting incidence increased with disease duration (32% for <1 year vs. 40.5% for >1 year).
• Pitting was more prevalent in severe psoriasis (47.6%) than in mild cases (34.2%).

Conclusions:

• Finger nail pitting is a significant nail finding in psoriasis patients.
• The incidence of finger nail pitting demonstrates a positive correlation with both the duration and severity of psoriasis.