THE PREVALENCE OF ACNE IN ADULTS 20 YEARS AND OLDER

A Report in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology

January 2008 -- A new report in the January 2008 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology (JAAD), reveals some very compelling new statistics about the prevalence of acne in adults over the age of 20, with women tipping the scales in every age group.

One of the lead authors of the study, dermatologist, Julie Harper, MD of the American Acne & Rosacea Society, explained that the rationale for the study was to examine the assumption that acne, one of the most common skin diseases, is often mistakenly thought to affect teenagers exclusively. In the survey reported in JAAD, investigators looked to see if a significant number of patients either continue to experience acne or develop new-onset acne after the teenage years.

Of 1,013 participants aged 20 years and older, who participated in the survey, 73.3% reported ever having acne. After the teenage years, women were more likely to report having acne than men, with the difference being statistically significant in all age groups. The prevalence of acne reported in women versus men was: 

• 20 to 29 years, 50.9% versus 42.5%
• 30 to 39 years, 35.2% versus 20.1%
• 40 to 49 years, 26.3% versus 12.0%
• 50 years and older, 15.3% versus 7.3%

The authors of the article say that the survey was limited by the fact that the results were based on the participant’s own perception of the presence or absence of acne rather than a clinical evaluation. However, the authors of the article concluded that acne continues to be a common skin problem past the teenage years, with women being
affected at higher rates than men in all age groups 20 years or older. They have concluded that an important next step is to examine how much hormones play a role in this disparity.

While there are many reasons to examine the prevalence of acne after teenage years, one is that evidence suggests that the impact of acne on a patient’s psychological and emotional well-being is comparable with that of systemic disease processes such as diabetes, asthma, arthritis, and epilepsy. Conventional wisdom has always maintained that without treatment, acne is generally expected to spontaneously regress during the late teenage or early adulthood years. However, this survey demonstrates that a significant number of patients experience persistent acne or develop new-onset adult acne after adolescence. The average age for presentation for acne treatment is 24 years, and 10% of visits are by patients between the ages of 35 and 44 years.

The importance of providing treatment for these adults is heightened by the awareness that acne that persists for longer periods is more likely to lead to scarring.

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For more information visit acnesociety.org
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CONTACT: Suzanne Lane/Michelle Olson/Alexis Fabricant
The Lane Communications Group
212.757.6880
[email protected]
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