Rising scabies incidence and the growing burden on GPs: a retrospective longitudinal study

Scabies cases are rising in several high-income European countries, but its true incidence remains unclear owing to its non-notifiable status. GPs play a key role in managing scabies, yet the impact on primary care is unknown.

To assess the epidemiology and care burden of scabies-related episodes in general practice.

A retrospective longitudinal study using pseudonymised data from Dutch GPs.

Data from five general practices, covering nearly 40 000 patients from 2014-2023, were analysed. Scabies-related episode incidence, time between scabies-related symptoms and first GP encounter (patient's delay), time between first GP encounter and scabies diagnosis (doctor's delay), and care burden were compared between two periods: 2014-2020 (low incidence) and 2021-2023 (high incidence).

In total, 1525 scabies-related episodes, including 4555 recorded encounters, were included. Between 2014 and 2023, the incidence increased from 99 to 1341 episodes per 100 000 patient-years, with encounters rising from 614 to 2438 per 100 000 patient-years between the two periods. The largest increase in encounters occurred in those aged 17-25 years (P<0.001) and in females (P = 0.002). Patient delays >28 days decreased from 26.4% to 14.3%. Scabies diagnoses during initial consultations improved from 84.9% to 92.3%. Encounters without interventions declined from 36.9% to 14.4%. Medical prescriptions and referrals per 100 000 patient-years increased.

Our findings highlight an exponential increase in scabies-related episodes, significantly increasing the burden on general practices. Regions experiencing rising scabies incidence rates should prioritise public health interventions to curb transmission, which require a coordinated clinical and public health response.