Advance Search

Prevalence of acne vulgaris among a sample of high school students in Erbil City

Baraa Ayad Yacub
Department of Community Medicine, College of Medicine, Hawler Medical University, Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq
Abubakir Majeed Saleh
Department of Community Medicine, College of Medicine, Hawler Medical University, Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq
Keywords:
Copyright and Licensing:

Copyright (c) 2026 Baraa Ayad Yacub, Abubakir Majeed Saleh (Author)

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Share:
Crossref
Scopus
Google Scholar
Europe PMC

Abstract

Background and objective: Acne vulgaris is one of the most prevalent dermatological conditions worldwide. Reliable research on the effects of acne on teenagers and its impact on quality of life is needed; such research may help dermatologists become more aware of the psychological impact of acne and may encourage teenagers to seek treatment. This study aimed to identify the prevalence of acne vulgaris among high school students in Erbil City.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 400 high school students aged 12-19 years in Erbil City, Iraq. The study was carried out over about one year, from October 2024 to October 2025, using a voluntary structured questionnaire and clinical examination.

Results: Among the study population, 59% of students had acne, with a greater frequency among females (65.9%) than males (54.1%). Regarding severity, mild cases made up the majority (66.1%), followed by moderate (28.8%) and severe cases (5.1%). Acne was most frequent (63.6%) among those aged 16-17 years, though the difference across age groups was not statistically significant (p = 0.066). There was no significant association between socioeconomic status and acne prevalence (p = 0.803).

Conclusion: A large proportion of high school students in Erbil suffer from acne vulgaris, with a greater frequency among females than males. Adolescent acne may be lessened through early education, lifestyle counseling, and dermatological care.

PDF
PDF

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

References

  1. Xu W, Xu J, Huang D, Wang Ch, Song J, Chen X,et al. Acne vulgaris: advances in pathogenesis and prevention strategies. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. Published online January 15, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-024-04984-8
  2. Wang Y, Xiao S, Ren J, Zhang Y. Analysis of the epidemiological burden of acne vulgaris in China based on the data of global burden ofdisease 2019. Front Med. 2022;9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2022.939584
  3. Abbas MY, Mohammed AZ. Prevalence, clinical types, aggravating factors and complicationsof acne vulgaris among medical studentsin Alkindy College of Medicine. AnnTrop Med Public Health. 2020;23(10). https://doi.org/10.36295/ASRO.2020.231011
  4. Doyle C. H21 acne treatments through the ages. Br J Dermatol. 2023;188(Suppl 4):ljad113.303. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjd/ljad113.303
  5. Ogé LK, Broussard A, Marshall MD. Acne vulgaris: diagnosis and treatment. Am Fam Physician. 2019;100(8):475-84.
  6. Saurat JH, Halioua B, Baissac C, Saint Aroman M,Taieb Ch, MD,Skayem Ch, et al. Epidemiologyof acne and rosacea: a worldwide global study.J Am Acad Dermatol. 2024;90(5):1016-8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaad.2023.12.038
  7. Radhi US, Abdulrahman MA, Makki UM. Epidemiological and laboratory study of acne vulgaris in women in Basrah city. Dermatol Arch. 2024;6(1). https://doi.org/10.36959/661/321
  8. Muhammed NI, Dabbagh RA. Isolation and identification of microorganisms in acne patients. Zanco J Med Sci. 2016;20(2):1330-6. https://doi.org/10.15218/zjms.2016.0028
  9. Branisteanu DE, Toader MP, Porumb EA,Serban LL, Pinzariu AC, Branisteanu CL, et al. Adult female acne: clinical and therapeutic particularities (Review). Exp Ther Med. 2022;23(2):1-7. https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2021.11074
  10. Fattah SK, Elethawi AMD. Correlation ofserum insulin-like growth factor one withacne severity. Adv Med J. 2022;7(1):101-7. https://doi.org/10.56056/amj.2022.165
  11. Meixiong J, Ricco C, Vasavda C, Ho BK. Diet and acne: a systematic review. JAAD Int. 2022;7:95-112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdin.2022.02.012
  12. Rękas B, Stradczuk M, Mazurek W,Mazurek Ł, Piętak M, Kruczyk B, et al. How eating sweets affects the skin — the impact of high glycemic index diet on acne formation: a review.J Educ Health Sport. 2024;68. https://doi.org/10.12775/JEHS.2024.68.50884
  13. Vasam M, Korutla S, Bohara RA. Acne vulgaris:a review of the pathophysiology, treatment,and recent nanotechnology based advances. Biochem Biophys Rep. 2023;36:101578. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbrep.2023.101578
  14. Eichenfield DZ, Sprague J, Eichenfield LF. Management of acne vulgaris: a review. JAMA. 2021;326(20):2055-67. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2021.17633
  15. Pan M, Zhou J, Pan X, Wang J, Qi Q, Wang L. Drugs for the treatment of postmenopausal symptoms: hormonal and non-hormonal therapy. Life Sci. 2022;312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lfs.2022.121255
  16. Heng AHS, Say YH, Sio YY, Ng YT, Chew FT. Gene variants associated with acne vulgaris presentation and severity: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Med Genomics. 2021;14(1):103. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12920-021-00953-8
  17. Heng AHS, Chew FT. Systematic review of the epidemiology of acne vulgaris. Sci Rep. 2020;10(1):5754. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-62715-3
  18. Jaber RM, Alnshash BM, Mousa SN, Fayoumi HS, Al-Qaderi LM, Zant AM. The epidemiology of acne vulgaris among adolescents and young adults in Jordan University Hospital. Open J Nurs. 2020;10(4):353-66. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojn.2020.104024
  19. Anaba EL, Ogunbiyi AO, George AO. Community based study of the influence of social class on the prevalence and clinical profile of adolescent facial acne vulgaris. Niger J Med. 2020;29(4):642-8.
  20. Alsulaimani H, Kokandi A, Khawandanh S, Hamad R. Severity of acne vulgaris: comparison of two assessment methods. Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol. 2020;13:711-6. https://doi.org/10.2147/CCID.S266320
  21. Mashi A, Daghriri SA, Mobarki OA,Otaif F, Suwaid OA, Alharbi RH, et al. Prevalence and contributing factors of acne vulgaris amongthe general population in the Jazan region,Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study. Cureus. Published online July 26, 2024. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.65407
  22. Grada A, Muddasani S, Fleischer AB, Feldman SR, Peck GM. Trends in office visits for the five most common skin diseases in the United States. J Clin Aesthet Dermatol. 2022;15(5):E82-6. PMCID: PMC9122273
  23. Shah N, Shukla R, Chaudhari P,Patil Sh, Anant Patil A, Nadkarni N, et al. Prevalence of acne vulgaris and its clinico-epidemiological pattern in adult patients: results of a prospective, observational study. J Cosmet Dermatol. 2021;20(11):3672-8. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocd.14040
  24. Ding R, He Y, Wu Q, Lin T. Quality oflife in patients with acne vulgaris:an observational study. Int J DermatolVenereol. Published online September 23,2024.DOI:10.1097/JD9.0000000000000315
  25. Liu L, Xue Y, Chen Y, Chen T, Zhong J, Shao X,et al. Prevalence and risk factors of acne scars in patients with acne vulgaris. Skin Res Technol. 2023;29(6):e13386. https://doi.org/10.1111/srt.13386
  26. Hagenström K, Müller K, Klinger T, Stephan B, Augustin M. Epidemiology and healthcare of juvenile and late-onset acne: claims data analysis. Dermatol Ther. 2024;14(11):3017-31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13555-024-01284-z
  27. Yang J, Yang H, Xu A, He L. A review of advancement on influencing factors of acne:an emphasis on environment characteristics. Front Public Health. 2020;8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.00450
  28. Hamza Y, Ramadan S, Elsayed M, Abdelraouf A. Aggravating factors of acne vulgaris among adolescents of secondary schools in New Minia City, Egypt. Minia J Med Res. 2020;31(1):309-14. https://doi.org/10.21608/mjmr.2022.221540
  29. Kostecka M, Kostecka J, Szwed-Gułaga O, Jackowska I, Kostecka-Jarecka J. The impact of common acne on the well-being of youngpeople aged 15-35 years and the influenceof nutrition knowledge and diet on acne development. Nutrients. 2022;14(24):5293. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14245293
How to Cite
Ayad Yacub, B. ., & Majeed Saleh, A. . (2026). Prevalence of acne vulgaris among a sample of high school students in Erbil City. Zanco Journal of Medical Sciences (ZJMS), 745–757. https://doi.org/10.15218/zjms.2026.053

Send mail to Author

Send Cancel