Abstract
Background: Asian-Americans represent the fastest growing minority group in the United States, but are under-represented patients in outpatient dermatology clinics. At the same time, skin cancer rates in individuals of Asian descent are increasing, but skin cancer detection appears to be delayed in Asian-Americans compared to white individuals. Some health-care provider related factors for this phenomenon have been reported in the literature, but the patient-related factors are unclear.Methods: This exploratory study to identify patient-related factors associated with dermatology visits in Asian-Americans was performed after Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval. An anonymous, online survey utilizing validated items was conducted on adults who self-identified as Asian-American in Northern California. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression for dermatology visits as indicated by responses to the question of " ever having had skin checked by a dermatologist" were performed on survey responses pertaining to demographic information, socioeconomic factors, acculturation, knowledge of melanoma warning signs and SSE belief and practice.Results: 89.7% of individuals who opened the online survey completed the items, with 469 surveys included in the analysis. Only 60% reported ever performing a SSE, and only 48% reported ever having a skin examination by a dermatologist. Multivariate models showed that " ever performing SSE" (p < 0.0001), marital status (p = 0.02), family history of skin cancer (p = 0.03) and generation in the United States (p = 0.02) were significant predictors of the primary outcome of " ever had skin checked by a dermatologist" .Conclusions: Identification of patient-related factors that associate with dermatology clinic visits in Asian-Americans is important so that this potential gap in dermatologic care can be better addressed through future studies.
Original language | English (US) |
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Article number | 13 |
Journal | BMC Dermatology |
Volume | 14 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 2 2014 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Acculturation
- Asian-Americans
- Dermatology
- Dermatology visits
- Early detection
- Ethnic skin
- Prevention
- Skin cancer
- Skin self-examination
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Dermatology