Prevalence and Severity of Hand Eczema in the Dutch General Population: A Cross-sectional, Questionnaire Study within the Lifelines Cohort Study

Data on chronic hand eczema and severity of hand eczema in the general population is scarce. In this cross-sectional study, a questionnaire was sent to 135,950 Lifelines Cohort Study participants, in order to investigate the prevalence and severity of hand eczema in the Dutch general population. In total, 57,798 subjects were included. The lifetime prevalence of hand eczema was 15.0% (95% confidence interval 14.7-15.3), the 1-year prevalence 7.3% (95% confidence interval 7.1-7.6), and the self-reported physician-diagnosed prevalence 6.1% (95% confidence interval 5.9-6.3). The 1-year prevalence of chronic hand eczema was 4.7% (95% confidence interval 4.5-4.9). The majority (56.9%) of the subjects with hand eczema had almost clear at worst ever and the prevalence of severe to very severe hand eczema at worst ever in the general population was 1.9% (95% confidence interval 1.8-2.1). Future epidemiological studies in the general population should include data about chronic hand eczema and severity of hand eczema, as this can provide perspective on the burden of hand eczema.

Automated summary

There is limited data on chronic hand eczema and its severity in the general population. This cross-sectional study investigated the prevalence and severity of hand eczema in the Dutch population through a questionnaire. The results showed that the lifetime prevalence of hand eczema was 15.0%, the 1-year prevalence was 7.3%, and the self-reported physician-diagnosed prevalence was 6.1%. The study also found that the majority of subjects with hand eczema had almost clear symptoms at their worst, and the prevalence of severe to very severe hand eczema in the general population was 1.9%. The study suggests that future epidemiological research should include data on chronic hand eczema and its severity to gain a better understanding of the burden of hand eczema.