[Skin lesions in a 1,000 newborns. A case and control study]

Cutaneous alterations are common in neonates. Nevertheless, no reliable studies exist to characterize the type and frequency of skin diseases in Mexican newborns. We carried out a prospective study for 6 month on 1,000 children to analyze cutaneous lesions present during the neonatal period in our population. Of these children, 790 (78%) were neonates admitted to the well-baby nursery, and 220 (22%) were in the sick-baby nursery. Comparison was made between the two groups. It was found that all the newborns (100%) from both groups presented from 2 to 10 different cutaneous lesion. A wide variety of skin diseases were found, but most were of a transitory nature. Birthmarks were less common and malformations even more so. By means of the X2 method, there was no statistically-significant difference between the two groups (p > 0.1).