Materials and Method: For this study, we recruited a total of 249 patients aged 65 years and older who had presented to the dermatology outpatient clinic. The incidence of nail diseases, the age groups for these diseases, education levels, BMIs and the relationship with additional diseases were investigated.
Results: The most frequent nail color change was lunula loss, in 77.9% of participants, and the most frequent surface change was brittle nails, in 42.1%.The most common nail finding due to repetitive trauma was splinter hemorrhages, in 16.9%, followed by onychauxis in 8.4% and onychocryptosis in 7.6%. The most common contour change was pincer nail,in 5.6%, and the most common infection was onychomycosis,in 33.3%. Lunula loss and onychauxis were significantly more common in patients aged 75 or older, compared to younger patients (p=0.002, p=0.01, respectively). BMI was significantly higher in patients diagnosed with an ingrowing nail (p <0.001).
Conclusion: The most frequently observed color change in the geriatric age group is lunula loss; the most common surface change is brittle nail, and the most common nail infection is onychomycosis. Lunula loss and onychauxis development increase with age. It is quite important to know the common nail diseases in order to be able to detect age-specific nail changes and the clues they provide in the geriatric age group.
Keywords : Aged; Patient; Nail