Dermatological manifestations among inpatients with substance use disorders - a comparative study of individuals with alcohol and drug use

Q: What was the aim of the study?

To investigate and compare the prevalence and characteristics of dermatological findings among inpatients with AUD versus DUD.

Q: What key differences in dermatological findings were observed between AUD and DUD?

Xerosis, dermatophytosis, rosacea, and mucosal findings were more frequent in AUD, while hesitation marks, dermatitis artefacta, and track marks/sooting tattoos were more common in DUD.

Sep 30, 2026

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Substance use disorders, including alcohol use disorder (AUD) and non-alcohol psychoactive drug use disorder (DUD), are linked to psychiatric and systemic outcomes and may also present dermatological manifestations that are frequently under-recognized. This descriptive cross-sectional study compared the prevalence and characteristics of dermatological findings in 109 hospitalized patients, categorized into AUD (n=33) and DUD (n=76), using clinical assessment and ICD-10 classification.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time28 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Introduction

AfacanYıldırım andYıldırım BMC Psychiatry (2026) 26:23 [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-025-07698-z](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-025-07698-z) BMC Psychiatry RESEARCH Open Access Dermatological manifestations among inpatients with substance use disorders: a comparative study of individuals with alcohol and drug use Elif Afacan Yıldırım 1* and Yusuf Ezel Yıldırım2 Abstract Background Substance use disorders (SUD), encompassing alcohol use disorder (AUD) and non-alcohol psychoactive drug use disorder (DUD), are associated not only with psychiatric and systemic health outcomes but also with dermatological manifestations. Nevertheless, such cutaneous findings often remain under-recognized. The present study aimed to investigate and compare the prevalence and characteristics of dermatological findings among inpatients with AUD and DUD. Methods This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary psychiatric hospital. The 109 hospitalized patients were categorized into two groups based on their primary diagnosis: AUD (n = 33) and DUD (n = 76) . Clinical data included sociodemographic features, substance use characteristics, and comorbidities. Dermatological diagnoses were established through physical examination and classified according to ICD-10 . Results Dermatological conditions were identified in nearly all participants (AUD:100%, DUD:94 . 7%) . However, almost half (43 . 1%) reported no dermatological complaints beforehand, and a majority (60 . 6%) had never sought dermatological care. Xerosis (24 . 2%/7 . 9%), dermatophytosis (78 . 8%/57 . 9%), rosacea (36 .4%/2 . 6%), and mucosal findings (100%/82 . 9%) were significantly more frequent in AUD. In contrast, hesitation marks (48 . 7%/9 . 1%), dermatitis artefacta (78 . 9%/51 . 5), sequelae of burns (0%/13 . 2%) and track marks/sooting tattoos (0%/22 .4%) were significantly more common in DUD. Tattoos were more prevalent in patients with DUD (p = 0 . 018), and correlated with hesitation marks (p < 0. 001) . All cases of hepatitis B, C, and HIV occurred in the DUD group. Conclusion Dermatological conditions are common among inpatients with SUD and show distinct profiles between AUD and DUD, yet they are often overlooked in psychiatric settings. Integrating dermatological evaluations into routine care may enhance early detection, prevent complications, and support comprehensive treatment. Clinical trial number Not applicable. Keywords Substance-Related disorders, Alcohol-Related disorders, Dermatological manifestations, Skin diseases, Inpatients *Correspondence: Elif Afacan Yıldırım [eliff_afacan@hotmail.com](eliff_afacan@hotmail.com) 1Department of Dermatology, Faculty of Medicine, Demiroglu Bilim University, Istanbul, Turkey 2Department of Psychiatry, Bakirkoy Prof. Dr. Mazhar Osman Training and Research Hospital for Psychiatry, Neurology and Neurosurgery, University of Health Sciences, Istanbul, Turkey © The Author(s) 2025. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, which permits any non-commercial use, sharing, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if you modified the licensed material. You do not have permission under this licence to share adapted material derived from this article or parts of it. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit [http://creati](http://creati)[vecommons.org/l](vec

FAQs

What was the aim of the study?

To investigate and compare the prevalence and characteristics of dermatological findings among inpatients with AUD versus DUD.

How were dermatological diagnoses determined?

Dermatological diagnoses were established through physical examination and classified according to ICD-10.

What key differences in dermatological findings were observed between AUD and DUD?

Xerosis, dermatophytosis, rosacea, and mucosal findings were more frequent in AUD, while hesitation marks, dermatitis artefacta, and track marks/sooting tattoos were more common in DUD.

Sep 30, 2026

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