Do Dermatoses Trigger Neurodegenerative Diseases? A Retrospective Observational Study

Background and Objective: Neurological diseases, in addition to their systemic effects, may also lead to various dermatological manifestations. In this study, the distribution of dermatological findings in patients diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease (PD), Multiple Sclerosis (MS), and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) was examined, and intergroup differences were evaluated. Methods: This retrospective study included a total of 848 patients who were followed in the neurology outpatient clinic and underwent dermatological evaluation. Patients were categorized into PD (n=347), MS (n=401), and ALS (n=100) groups. The presence of 21 dermatological findings was assessed in each patient, and the data were analyzed using the Jamovi statistical software. Chi-square test was used for intergroup comparisons, and McNemar’s test was used for pairwise comparisons. Results: The most frequently observed dermatological findings were fungal infections (11.9%), xerosis (11.0%), eczematous dermatitis (8.6%), and seborrheic dermatitis (4.7%). High-prevalence findings such as fungal infections, xerosis, eczematous dermatitis, and seborrheic dermatitis were significantly more common compared to lower-prevalence findings (p