Effect of Month of Birth on the Risk of Developing Psoriasis

  • Ana Martins Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
  • Andreia Bettencourt Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal; Laboratório de Imunogenética, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
  • Tiago Torres Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal; Consulta de Psoríase do Serviço de Dermatologia do Centro Hospitalar e Universitário do Porto, Porto, Portugal
Keywords: Psoriasis, Risk Factors Seasons, Sunlight, Ultraviolet Rays, Vitamin D

Abstract

Introduction: Psoriasis is an immunemediated dermatosis characterized by chronic inflammation, abnormal proliferation and aberrant differentiation of keratinocytes, hyperplastic blood vessels and infiltration of inflammatory cells. Psoriasis is a multifactorial disease and is influenced by genetics and epigenetic modifications that can be triggered by environmental factors. Climate and sun exposure may affect psoriasis prevalence and the ultraviolet radiation is a useful treatment. Our objective was to evaluate the relationship between the month of birth and the risk of developing psoriasis.

Methods: The monthly distribution of births of patients with psoriasis (n = 755) was compared to that of a control population, comprised by Portuguese individual born during the same period and from the same region (n = 6 560 032).

Results: Birth rate of psoriasis patients decreased in October (OR 0.74; 95% CI 0.55 – 0.99; p 0.041). After Bonferroni correction and after grouping the months by trimesters, no statistical significant differences were found.

Conclusion: Our results may be related to the particular meteorological characteristics of Portugal that may lead to stabilization of the vitamin D synthesis during the whole year. The perception of the environmental influence on the development of a specific pathology is very important because it allows the establishment of preventive measures that will reduce disease incidence. 

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Published
2018-01-26
How to Cite
Martins, A., Bettencourt, A., & Torres, T. (2018). Effect of Month of Birth on the Risk of Developing Psoriasis. Journal of the Portuguese Society of Dermatology and Venereology, 75(4), 337-342. https://doi.org/10.29021/spdv.75.4.872
Section
Original Articles